Gossamer Dreams
by teresa
Summary: AU. In another time, in another place, people struggle to understand and live their lives as they know how. But when wishes and dreams are all that you see, what is real?
1. Nightfall

This story's so gonna rule.  I can _feel_ it.  Just so you know, the prologue is confusing.  If you aren't sure what's going on by the end of it and you're questioning who all the people are…well then I've done my job well.  I'll be interested to see who can figure out what and how quickly, but mostly I'm excited for how cool this story's gonna be.  Well, don't take my word for it.  Just read on…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Prologue

*****

"Hold your head up, dear." A plump middle-aged woman with her hair pulled back tightly in a severe bun patted the hand of the very pregnant woman sitting beside her in the public carriage that traveled as far as the border that Fukumaden shared with it's long-time enemy, Seiiki.  Of course, Kaede had no way of affording passage back to her motherland, and even if she did, she doubted that she could make it past the rigorous inspections there.  She was only continuing on until the capital, Yuurei, where she had lived for the past twenty years in relative peace and quiet despite her origins.  "We'll be stopping soon enough and then you can have a bite to eat.  Until then, try to keep your spirits up."

"She's rather badly off, isn't she?" the only other person in the carriage spoke up.  He was a grubby young man carrying a large bundle of dirty clothes in his arms as though it was all he owned in the entire world.  Kaede hated traveling by coach, but there had been no way around it.  She could no more afford private transport than she could refuse the summons of an old friend in need, dragging her from her home to the Fukumadenian countryside.  She had helped Hanami to disappear from the view of the authorities over ten years ago, and the girl was not to be ignored or forgotten.  She couldn't possibly refuse to help when Hanami fell ill, much to the terror of her doting husband.  He was a simple man who likely had no idea what Hanami really was, and she had already borne him a son whom he valued almost as much as her, if not more.  Hanami had always been a small woman, slight and poorly built for the strain of pregnancy, and it seemed that her current state was altogether too taxing for the young girl who had reached the age of twenty only last spring.  Kaede had meant to visit soon anyway, if only to confirm what Hanami had told her regarding her son.  He bore no signs of being Gifted, but as far as Kaede was concerned, that was for the best.  Her kind simply was not allowed to live happily in Fukumaden.  That was why she had dedicated herself to helping those who, like her, found themselves trapped in the country with no hope of escaping unscathed.  "Any idea what's wrong with her?"

"For one, this coach is miserably hot and suffocating as the city night outside." Kaede told the man primly.  "She's not a happy looking child, that's for sure.  Where were you heading, dear?"

"Seiiki." The woman spoke up for the first time since she'd asked leave to sit next to Kaede when she entered the coach that morning, her face red and tear-streaked.

"Got family there?" the man asked, his provincial accent carrying a conversational tone.  Kaede was glad he'd spoken, for the name of her old home struck the older woman momentarily speechless.  "I got a cousin as lives there, to tell the truth.  Not one of _them_ of course, just a normal kinda guy.  A farmer."

"Is that so?" Kaede asked, trying to keep the cold anger out of her voice.  It was ridiculous how even now, the war between Youkai and Gifted pitted even the uneducated peasants of Fukumaden against her kind.  Not that they would be able to recognize the Gift, anyway.  Very few outside of the ruling classes knew that there were certain signs, which made the Gifted easily spotted by those looking for them.  If she hadn't learned early how to hide those signs, she might have long since died in the dungeons of the deepest prison in Yuurei.  Returning her attentions to the ashen-faced woman beside her, Kaede's voice filled with warmth and sympathy.  "If you are bound for the Seiikian border, then you have a long journey ahead of you yet."

"I know." She answered, uncommon determination and dignity in her tone that sounded somehow regal to the older woman's ears, and when she looked up, Kaede nearly yelped in surprise.  Her eyes…

"My child, soon enough we shall reach Yuurei, and that is where I myself am bound.  I live there, you see, and you are more than welcome to share lodging with me for the night if you have need." Kaede lowered her voice so that perhaps the dirty man across from them wouldn't invite himself along as well.  She had no time for thoughtless vagabonds.

"You…needn't worry." The woman offered Kaede a strained grin.  "It's this air…so thick.  I'll be fine."

"I insist that you stay for the evening.  I would enjoy the company of another woman, and besides that, your face reminds me of home." Kaede hoped the woman would catch her hint, and indeed she did.  She made a strangled noise before covering up with a forced cough and then smiling warmly at the older woman.

"Perhaps we shall speak of your childhood?" she was staring hard at Kaede's gray eyes, obviously wondering how much the old woman could possibly know; if she was sympathetic or just hoping for a quick reward turning in a Gifted to the authorities.

"It's been many years since I've spoken freely of such things." That answered the other woman's questions, and she sighed before leaning back and closing her eyes wearily.

"What is your name, old woman?" she asked after a long pause.

"Kaede." The older woman hoped that she would not refuse her offer after all.

"You may call me Mikomi." The pregnant woman told her, rolling her head to the side and looking out the window.  "I shall accept your kind offer, Kaede.  Many thanks to you."

"I also could do with lodgings." The dirty man spoke up.  "My son's near starved as me, and we been traveling a long ways.  Name's Keisotsu."  Kaede raised a graying eyebrow in surprise.  So _that_ was what he was holding in that bundle of clothing.

"I could never turn away a child in need." Kaede admitted, feeling rather foolish as she leaned forward slightly.  Sure enough, just under a filthy fold of cloth she spotted a shock of black hair that must be the poor thing's head.  "We shall all of us have a dinner together."

"That sounds fine." Mikomi looked a bit worried, and it was no wonder.  Kaede would have never allowed a man like Keisotsu into her home but for her pity for his child.  "I didn't realize there was a baby under all that cloth." She told the man speculatively, obviously trying to catch a glimpse just as Kaede had.

"Barely a baby, I'd say.  Most of seven years old now, my kid." The man peeled back a bit of the cloth so they could see the puny child's dirty, hunger-pinched face.  Kaede had no doubt the child _was_ starving to death from the way he looked.  "He's sleeping now.  I like to keep him all bundled when we're moving about or he can be louder than a banshee." Keisotsu laughed as though this was a hilarious comparison.  "His mother had no trouble shutting him up, but I never got the hang of it."

"Where is his mother now?" Mikomi asked politely as the carriage drew to a stop.  Kaede saw people leaving the coach ahead of them laden with personal belongings, and she began gathering her own meager possessions.

"Dead seven months now." Keisotsu told them, hefting the child up in his arms.  "Was the winter what finished her off, poor sweet woman."

"That's horrible, I'm sorry." Mikomi apologized as Kaede helped the young woman gather her own belongings.  Neither woman seemed very surprised when Keisotsu left the carriage and stood waiting for them without offering any assistance himself.

"She must have been an amazing woman." Kaede offered snidely as all three of them began the short walk to her small home.

"My wife?" the man seemed unsure at first, but at Kaede's slight nod he agreed enthusiastically, unaware that the comment had been meant merely as jest.  "Oh, sure enough!  Never much for hard labor, but she was smart as a whip and made the best potato casserole you ever tasted!"

"A shame she's gone." Kaede stopped as they reached her little hovel.  "I always thought nothing complimented a sharp wit as well as a masterful potato casserole."  Kaede finally dug her key out of the deep pockets of her skirts, letting her guests in.  "I apologize for the disorder.  I wasn't expecting guests.  Go ahead and set your things down.  I'll get a fire started…" Kaede set her own bags down before quickly lighting a few candles and hunching over to set up a fire.

"It's very cozy, isn't it?" Mikomi spoke after a bit, still standing even though she was clearly exhausted.  Keisotsu had helped himself to a chair, and his bundled child had been carelessly discarded on the floor at his feet.  Kaede sometimes wondered how nature justified allowing such people to be responsible for the lives of innocent children, but decided there was little she could do to help the boy.

"Cozy's a very nice way to say it's too small." She turned to the pregnant woman.  "Please, sit down dear.  I'll make soup if you aren't opposed.  Perhaps some nice biscuits as well…"

"That would be lovely, thank you very much."  Mikomi spotted the boy on the floor, who finally seemed to be stirring from his prolonged nap.  She sat down, watching the bundle expectantly, but after some time the stirring ceased and it seemed that while the boy was in fact alive, he was not about to wake up.  "Does he always sleep so much?"

"Aw, yeah.  He likes sleeping cause then he forgets to be hungry." Keisotsu chuckled at this.  "Growing boys, ya know?  And also, that's his mother's old dressing gown he's all wrapped in.  Keeps him happy."

"Poor baby," Mikomi leaned over with some effort, reaching into the filthy bundle to stroke the boy's head.  Keisotsu watched silently as the contact actually caused the boy to stir, climbing up into the pregnant woman's chair and nuzzling up to her before falling asleep again.  "What a darling he is."

"You seem more than ready to be a mother." Kaede spoke as she mixed the biscuit dough while her soup simmered over the fire.

"I love children." She answered readily, still stroking the boy's unwashed hair.  "Not like adults.  They don't pass judgment without good cause.  Their world is too pure for politics and prejudices."  Kaede darted a glance at Mikomi and saw that the woman's eyes were shining with unshed tears.  Bustling over to Keisotsu, she dug a few coins out of her pockets.

"Keisotsu, why don't you go down the street and see if you can get some milk for your boy.  And cheese, if they've got a bit."  Kaede nearly pushed the man out the door before returning to Mikomi's side.

"I'm sorry…I shouldn't get so worked up, and yet…" Mikomi shook her head mournfully, still cuddling the little boy beside her.  "Are you one too?"

"Yes." Kaede returned to making her biscuits.  "I found a way to hide the eyes, you see.  An herbal infusion, but if you haven't any skill spiritually, it won't work.  They look grey, don't they?"  Kaede looked up, widening her eyes for Mikomi to see.

"Very clever." Mikomi admired.  "And with that, do you think I could cross the border?"

"Do you have a Mark?" Kaede asked.  "Mine is horrible, you see." She hitched up her skirts to display a large maroon blotch on her calf.  "Impossible to hide from border officials, so I've no hope of returning any time soon."

"Mine is lucky." Mikomi pulled her gleaming black hair out of its haphazard knot, mussing it slightly before pointing to a certain spot on her scalp.  Kaede moved closer and saw the patch of maroon skin, nearly impossible to make out under the mass of dark strands.

"That _is_ lucky." Kaede agreed.  "Though even luckier are the two I've met who were born without one.  Not every Gifted has even half a chance getting back into Seiiki, but if you can hold onto your strength and take the herbs, I believe your child will be born there."

"I had worried." Mikomi admitted.  "It will be a close thing, don't you think?"

"Most Gifted would decide to leave Fukumaden before getting to that point." Kaede agreed.  "How long since you've seen home?"

"Four months." Mikomi answered.  "I crossed with Musouka, the baby's father, so no questions were asked.  When he proposed to me, we never expected that no one in Seiiki would marry us.  Then I became pregnant, and he suggested we try here, but it was a touchy thing.  He left me at his family's country estate and took his coach to Yuurei to appeal to his family there.  They knew that he was to be wed, but not the details of the match…and when his coach was attacked on the road to the city…"

"He was killed?" Kaede gasped.  "And now you plan to leave Fukumaden?  Without an escort…he was Youkai, wasn't he?"

"Yes, Musouka ka'Neko." Mikomi darted a sidelong glance at the older woman to see how she viewed such a union.  "No one would agree to marry a ka'Neko to a member of the sei'Junjou.  Our names alone made our blood ties utterly obvious, and then if that wasn't clear enough…with my eyes and his ears…everyone with any knowledge of Youkai and Gifted refused to have anything to do with us."

"What if your child has Youkai signs?" Kaede asked.

"I suppose…I could bring it back here to live with Musouka's family.  He wrote to tell them I was expecting, but he wanted to meet with them in person to tell the rest."  Mikomi sighed sadly, obviously not excited at the idea of giving up her child.  "If only…it didn't really matter to us what people said.  I didn't _need_ to marry him officially; just knowing that he loved me was enough.  And yet…it seemed to us that we were breaking down barriers, fighting prejudice…we were so idealistic.  If it hadn't been that way, he'd still be here."  And with that, tears started flowing down Mikomi's face.  Though she sniffled a few times, she was a rather quiet crier, and the boy nestled against her was not in the least bit disturbed.  Mikomi continued to pet him as lovingly as though he were her own son.

"There are theories that the child of a Youkai and a Gifted is born completely without traits of either, a normal human."  Kaede watched the biscuits baking over her fire while stirring the soup carefully.

"I guess I'll learn the answer soon enough, won't I?"  Mikomi was fully distracted as the boy in her lap began fussing, likely reminded of his incessant hunger by the rich smell of broth filling the tiny home.

"Is he hungry?" Kaede stood up, wringing her hands at the increasingly vociferous squalling of the boy, his mouth open wide and his eyes clamped shut.  She looked around, finding a stale end of bread, which she quickly soaked in the bubbling soup.  She blew on it, hoping it wouldn't burn the child's mouth, before handing it to a grateful looking Mikomi.  "Have him suck on that until his father returns with the milk and cheese."

"Look at him," Mikomi sighed as the boy accepted her offering eagerly, trying to cram the entire piece of bread down his throat.  "He's utterly malnourished."

"Dead mother, and a father like that…who can be surprised?" Kaede sighed wearily.  "I always want to take the poor children home with me.  Perhaps it's only because I never had any of my own."

"You're a good woman, Kaede." Mikomi smiled up at the woman, glad to see her charge was finally getting fed.  "You protect the Gifted, live peacefully in a Youkai country, feed the hungry.  And how do you make a living for yourself?"

"As a simple herbalist." Kaede answered, pulling the biscuits from the fire and emptying the tray into her large wooden bowl to cool them.  "It's a rare occupation here.  It seems that about fifty years ago, Youkai still feared Gifted spies enough that they had anyone practicing the art executed.  Attitudes changed when rich Youkai children began falling ill with no hope of treatment from any surviving healer who wanted to live.  However, a fear still exists, and it isn't a highly desirable position.  Of course, it pays well since there are so few.  That's how I can afford my own home, small though it might be.  I don't need anything more, and there's space in the back for me to grow my herbs as well as a few vegetables for my own meals.  A cherry tree as well, though I'm afraid you just missed the fruits."

"Would it be too intrusive if I asked where you went?" Mikomi asked, turning to address the older woman while rocking the bread-sucking boy in her arms.

"To visit a friend." Kaede replied easily, setting about pulling down her entire collection of four mismatched bowls and spoons.  "A girl named Hanami.  I hid her years ago, when she was only a child."

"How many Gifted have you helped?" Mikomi wanted to know.

"Quite a few, I suppose." Kaede considered as she set down her set of carved wooden cups, an old gift from a man whose leg she had healed six years ago.  "I don't count most as helping, really.  Advising, like with you, I've done a lot.  And then there are a few who are managing just fine, but like the chance to talk to someone who can understand about life away from home.  There are a number that I had to train so they could use the eye-color herbs effectively.  Many needing money, food, shelter, maybe some help finding a place to hide if they couldn't be smuggled back to Seiiki.  You wouldn't believe the number of Gifted in Fukumaden, and thanks to our willingness to help each other, relatively few end up being caught."

"Could I ask…do you know what happens to the Gifted who _are_ caught?  Are they killed?" Mikomi wanted to know.

"Hard to say.  Once, I helped a girl who was only seventeen and claimed that she'd been serving the past three years in the royal palace before she managed to escape.  She wouldn't explain more.  I think they made her a maid of some sort.  She was born into a high family in the Seiiki aristocracy originally, so it was probably very shameful for her, serving Youkai as though there wasn't a drop of the Gift in her soul.  Of course, she was completely untrained as so many young ones are these days, and she couldn't have used her abilities to escape.  She never said how she got away, but she was very pretty, and I wouldn't be surprised if that alone won her freedom.  Men have an unfortunate habit of assuming that if a woman has a pretty face, she doesn't have a deceptive bone in her body.  Oftentimes it leads to their downfall, and they go down with a smile on their face, never knowing that the woman they still trust so blindly is the one leading them to their end."

"I always heard they killed all the Gifted they caught." Mikomi shrugged before noticing the boy had finished his crust and turning her attention to keeping him happy until his father returned with the rest of their dinner.  "Where _is_ Keisotsu, I wonder?"

"Should we start without him?" Kaede began ladling soup into three of the four bowls, setting two bowls on an empty crate serving as a makeshift table next to Mikomi's chair so that she didn't have to get up.  "There you are." Kaede smiled at the little boy, but he was blushing and refused to meet her gaze.  "Doesn't seem very outgoing now that he's got food, does he?"

"Adorable, though." Mikomi shifted to help the boy with his soup and Kaede handed out biscuits before sitting down with her own dinner.  More than any other part of the home she so distantly remembered, Kaede missed sharing dinners with her family, and for once she felt almost natural, even though she was in a land that would likely never accept her for a mere circumstance of birth.

----------

"Gods save me!" Mikomi's scream rent the thick air of Kaede's candlelit home.  The young woman was on the floor with bundles of cloth and endless herbs being applied by a panicking Kaede who was swiftly learning that Mikomi was in serious trouble.

"You need to _breathe_ Mikomi!" Kaede, normally calm and reassuring when helping others, was reacting to the built up worries of the day in addition to her stress over Hanami's difficult pregnancy.  She had taken in another Gifted who happened to be painfully pregnant with the child of a Youkai.  Then there was the matter of Keisotsu, who still had not returned for his son or for his dinner.  Kaede had been up late, worrying that the man had abandoned the child for her and Mikomi to care for when Mikomi had called out in her sleep, the first hint of a very difficult bout of labor.

Three hours later, the woman was bleeding and screaming horrendously, and the fact that the little boy had woken up and was now crying hysterically as Kaede futilely attempted to calm him down, staunch the blood flow, and successfully deliver the child was not helping matters any.  For some reason the baby, no matter how it was manipulated and turned refused to drop properly, and it seemed as though the baby would never make it through the fatally narrow hips of it's mother.

"I'm going to turn the baby." Kaede was exhausted, but she was sure that Mikomi must feel much worse than her at the moment, so she attempted to continue as though she hadn't already reached a point of despair as far as the delivery was concerned.  She had to keep trying for Mikomi's sake, and for the sake of the child that would die if it could not clear the birth canal sometime soon.  If Kaede could help it, all of this would end soon enough, with a happy, healthy baby and a new mother who was exhausted, but essentially healthy as well.  And yet, Mikomi's screams were fading into whimpers of pain, and just as Kaede's hope was fading as well, she felt the baby miraculously do what she had been wanting it to, dropping through the barrier that had held it and crowning.  Mikomi was hardly fit to put out any sort of effort anymore, but Kaede was able to pull the baby out herself now that the head was out.  The little girl cried out, and Kaede didn't realize she'd been holding her breath until she cried out in relief, swiftly bundling the baby up as Mikomi cried out again.  At first Kaede thought she was senseless with the stress of the delivery, still trying to push the baby that had already been born, but upon closer inspection she noticed something was still obstructing the birth canal.

"Another?"  her eyes went wide as Mikomi let out a last shuddering shadow of a scream before passing out completely.  Kaede had no time to rouse the woman as she maneuvered and twisted until the second little girl obeyed her skilled coaxing and met the world with a cry much louder and stronger than her sister's had been.  Of course, the first baby seemed quite all right now, a healthy pink glow to her hastily cleaned skin as she bawled on next to her quickly bundled twin.  Kaede then turned to the ailing mother, but it seemed that even though the children had survived the ordeal, it had been the last of poor Mikomi's miseries.  Now Kaede found herself alone with a dead woman, two screaming baby girls and one child who was staring at her and Mikomi in terrified fascination.

"Komi?" his eyes were wide as he made the inquiry, stepping closer and wiping his dirty, tear-streaked face.  Kaede was about to bury her face in her hands when she did a double take, pulling the little boy closer to verify what she'd thought perhaps was a trick of the light.  Purple eyes.

*****

The End (Of the Prologue, That is)


	2. Drifting to Sleep

Ah yes…and now that I have all of you good and confused, I shall begin the painfully slow process of illumination and the shrouding of further mysteries that shall pervade the entirety of this story.  I'm so content right now.  I feel so clever…sigh.  Although, I must send out a respectful salute to shadowhawk who put in some very well thought out guesses as to what was going on.  No one else even hazarded to suppose, although some people claimed they knew everything.  Yeah…right.  Now, let's get on with it, and perhaps some things will start to make _more_ sense in this chapter.  Or even LESS SENSE!!!  Mwahahahahaha….hack…cough…yeah.

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 1

*****

"There we are.  What do you think of that, Miroku?" Kaede addressed Keisotsu's son, who had been living in her care for the better part of a week.  The dark circles of starvation had faded from under his eyes, and after a thorough delousing and scrubbing session, the boy was revealed to be quite adorable, despite his still emaciated form.  That would pass soon enough, though.

"Komi's in there?" Miroku made a face at the stone urn Kaede had placed on a carefully secured platform in the western corner of her garden.  It was dangerous, she knew, placing something that was so blatantly the mark of a Gifted grave in a place where it could potentially be seen by others.  But then, Kaede was well aware that the patrols of even Heisotsu, the Youkai Imperial guard, would be unable to recognize the shrine as anything other than an odd statue in an old woman's garden.  Although the Youkai fancied themselves aware of every intimate detail of Gifted lifestyle, they missed out on many of the things that the Gifted valued most.  And Kaede could hardly let Mikomi rot in the earth, as the Youkai did with their dead.  It was just too brutal an end for her to inflict on one of her kind, even if the stringent adherence to Gifted burial custom could lead to her discovery.

"Yes, and when we want to talk to her, all we have to do…" Kaede kneeled, holding two fingers to her lips and closing her eyes to demonstrate the procedure.  "Is pray, like this.  Do you see?"

"Like this?" Miroku had edged closer to Mikomi's remains and knelt beside Kaede carefully, lifting his own fingers and blinking violet eyes at the older woman in a plea for approval.

"Just like that.  Now then, do you not feel ready for an afternoon nap?" Kaede stood, noting the added creak of protest her aged joints gave.  She was indeed growing old, it seemed.  Far too old to be raising a four-year-old Gifted boy and two newborn youkai-Gifted half-breed girls.  But she supposed that her afternoon's errand would help them all, in the end.  It broke her heart to do it…but it seemed to be for the best.  Mikomi herself had told her exactly what she would do if the baby showed Youkai signs, and as the girls' current guardian, it was her responsibility to fulfill the wishes of their late mother to the best of her ability.

"But I'm not tired…" Miroku protested feebly.  It was only a half-hearted argument, and she knew that until he was truly healthy, she couldn't expect anything very challenging to come from him.

"Ah, but if you go to sleep now, then I promise to bring you fresh milk when you wake up." Kaede winked at him, smiling warmly as the boy's face lit up.  When he smiled, which he was doing with increasing frequency since he started to regain his vitality, his whole face lit up.  No doubt he would be very handsome when he was grown, but at the moment, he was utterly adorable.

"And some for Gome and Kikyo?" he pressed eagerly.  Kaede bit her lip at that.  She couldn't very well _lie_ to the boy about what was happening, he'd know soon enough anyway.  She could only hope that he hadn't grown too attached to the younger twin, the one that showed Youkai signs so clearly it was hard to believe Mikomi was her mother and Kikyo her twin.  Kagome's black hair and complexion matched her sister's, but her eyes were a bright blue instead of Kikyo's purple, obviously Gifted eyes.  In addition, while Kikyo looked every inch the full Gifted baby, complete with a tiny Mark located at the base of her spine, Kagome bore no Mark and sported pointed ears that would make her father's lineage obvious to anyone with any knowledge of Youkai.  

"Maybe." Kaede finally answered.  "You'll just have to see.  Now off to bed with you, and I'll go to market and see if I can't find a treat or two."  At this promise, Miroku ran into the little house as fast as his scrawny legs would carry him, and had disappeared by the time the old woman had entered the house herself, heading immediately to the secondhand cradle both babies were crowded in, sleeping peacefully as though they hadn't a care in the world.  She supposed that they really didn't.  How were they to know that their parents were dead, that what was in their blood would send them to a quick end if anyone ever learned the truth, and never mind that they were only babies?  Would it hurt them to be separated, she couldn't help but wondering.  And yet…better for at least _one_ of them to have a hope of being raised by blood relatives.  And would they be good to the child?  Would they love it and care for it, or would they shun it, somehow sensing it's difference from them?  These worries plagued her mind, but it was what Mikomi had wanted.  And she would do all she could.  "Come on then, sweet child." Kaede spoke softly as she picked up Kagome, the girl with the pointed ears and already slightly clawed fingers.  No doubt that when her teeth grew in, she would have a set of fangs to match all the other features.

_I'll only look at them, to see if they are good people before I give her to them._  Kaede assured herself.  _And if not, I can always leave without telling them what I truly came to do.  And besides that…they're a rich family.  She should be well assured of a happy life with her true family.  As soon as I can find a Gifted willing to take the risk, I might send Kikyo to Seiiki, and then she shall also be raised by her family._

Kaede knew, though, that it would be _very_ difficult to smuggle the obviously Gifted baby across the border.  If the inspectors didn't see the eyes, as obviously the child was too young to begin training her spirit, they would definitely find the Mark.  But while the baby was still so young, so small, it might be conceivable to stow her away where she could escape notice altogether.  The idea deserved further thought, and yet…it was not the time to be concerned with Kikyo's future.  Already, her hurried and nervous strides had carried her into the wealthy neighborhood across the Wareme River, and up ahead she could see the stylized lion coat of arms on the ka'Neko mansion.  That the Youkai lived in splendor while the rest of Fukumaden suffered to pay the taxes that kept them high upon their throne embittered Kaede, but at the same time, it was much the same in Seiiki with the wealthy Gifted ruling over the peasants absolutely.  Odd that even after the Revolution and the Great Conflict, both Fukumaden and Seiiki kept roughly the same social structures that the old aristocracy had placed upon the once united nations before they split in two.

_Like children squabbling over the crumbs of a broken cookie, our ancestors tore their world apart and flipped it on its head.  But even though they chafed under the rule of normal humans, Gifted and Youkai maintain the same attitude now that once pushed their forebears to revolution.  Do we not learn from the past?_  Kaede wondered as she stepped up to the gates of the ka'Neko home and waited for the guard to notice her.  _Or do we simply feel our powers render us immune to the violence angry, suffering, desperate humans can, and someday will create?_

"Healer." The guard addressed her with a nod.  "I was not aware that you were summoned."  But even as he protested, the man opened the gates and escorted her in, making Kaede realize once again the advantages of being one of the few healers in the city.  Recognition alone wouldn't have been enough at the palace, or at many other Youkai homes, but Kaede was well aware that Madame ka'Neko was suffering from a chronic condition of the bones, and healers were constantly coming and going.  Stories said that in the far past, before the Great Conflict, Youkai blood had been strong enough to eliminate the risk of all but the most vicious illnesses in its ranks.  But years of letting their abilities go unused and marrying only from the ultimately limited pool of other full-blood Youkai had taken its toll.

Kaede watched a whispered exchange between the head maid and the guard, and after a moment, the guard departed and the maid led Kaede to wait in the parlor while she fetched her mistress, obviously assuming that was why the healer had come to call.  It was as though no one could see the child she carried, and it was slightly unnerving that it had not yet aroused interest.  Kaede was beginning to feel doubtful about the whole business when Madame ka'Neko herself entered the parlor, face firmly dignified until her eyes fell to the baby in Kaede's arms, at which point she sat across from the healer and tilted her head curiously.

"Healer, I did not call you." The woman told her guest.  "And you bring a child into my home for what purpose?"

"Madame, I beg your pardon, but if you would only hear me.  I understand that your late son was the young master Musouka?" Kaede inquired, and continued at the Madame's slight nod.  "You may have heard that he was to wed a woman soon, and that he was to introduce her before what happened."

"You know much, healer." The old youkai woman seemed impressed, but it did not stop her from continually sparing soft glances for the still-sleeping Kagome.  Kaede took a deep breath, her mind made up before she spoke the words.

"Both your son and his intended have passed from this world.  I met the woman on her last day in this realm, and she died giving birth to your granddaughter." Nothing more was needed for the old woman to realize the identity of the baby in Kaede's arms.

"You brought her…" the woman who had seemed so emotionless at first suddenly looked so full of love for the baby that Kaede felt a surge of relief.  Obviously, Kagome would be in good hands.

"Her mother named her Kagome.  After a kinswoman from long ago." Kaede lied.  True, she did remember from the past a member of the sei'Junjou with that name.  It was how she had chosen the names of both babies, but obviously the mother didn't have a chance to name either.  "I hope it pleases Madame."

"You've no idea…what this means." Kaede was shocked to see the glimmer of wetness in Madame ka'Neko's eyes.  "I've been so poorly since Musouka left us.  And now this.  Michiko!"  She clapped her hands and the head maid bustled in, curtsying easily.  "Bring this woman a string of Kinka!  Make sure it's the full hundred, as well."

"Yes, Madame." Michiko curtsied again and disappeared while Kaede's eyes popped.  One hundred Kinka?  With that kind of money she could practically afford to retire…though maybe not anymore with two extra mouths to feed.

"Madame, there is no need to reward me for what I saw only as my duty to you, who must have loved your son so much." Kaede lowered her head in deference, as was expected when one received any gift from a Youkai.  "I wish only to see the child happy with her family."

"I must insist that you accept my gift in return for yours, dear healer.  You have brought light to an old woman's heart." The old youkai woman reached for her grandchild eagerly, and Kaede curtsied before excusing herself quietly, so as not to disturb from the emotion of the moment.  It was so wonderful to know that Kagome would be treasured and raised in a loving family.  Not even feeling the added weight of her purse, Kaede nearly floated across Yuurei to her home.  Once she arrived, she remembered her promise to Miroku and after secreting the string of gold coins, Kaede left once again with only a few small copper Douka to buy the milk before he woke up.  She dreaded having to explain where Kagome had gone to, but then…Miroku still hadn't asked after his father.  So perhaps things would work out in the end.  And perhaps even an old woman like her could help to raise the two Gifted children in her home.  Maybe she could even help them to survive.  After all, that was what she had always done.

----------

"What's wrong?" the innocent concern in Miroku's young voice was reflected in his large violet eyes as he looked up from where he was sprawled out on the floor near the fire, diligently working on imitating the calligraphy in the copy book that Kaede had put together for him.  Only a week after turning Kagome over to the ka'Neko household, the old woman had hit on studying as the only way to keep the child distracted from her mysterious disappearance.  Kaede had been pleased to find that the boy's mother had managed to teach Miroku the two basic, phonetic alphabets used throughout Seiiki and Fukumaden, as well as a small amount of the ancient alphabet of scholars and aristocrats.  Of course, the fact that he knew his numbers as well as his name and that of his mother in addition to a few common characters in the older, more complicated base of the phonetic alphabet that was more commonly known tipped Kaede off to the fact that his mother had indeed been the source of his Gifted blood.  Although the name Chishiki didn't sound particularly familiar, Miroku had no idea what her maiden name had been, and Kaede supposed that she was probably from a powerful enough family to produce a daughter well learned enough to teach her son so much before she died.  Kaede had first learned of his knowledge when she caught him trying to read a pamphlet that she had been handed by a pushy student on her way home.  The fact that he was able to get anything out of it was enough for her to decide that even though she would rather he _didn't_ read political complaints on the unfair taxation laws of Fukumaden quite yet, it was obviously time to continue his education.  He picked things up very quickly, and Kaede entertained the idea that he might be able to attend the College when he became old enough and perhaps become a great scholar.  Truly there wasn't much money in such a thing, but it would be a lot better than most jobs a Gifted child could hope to aspire to in this land.

Miroku's writing abilities, however, were not the subject of interest at the moment.  He was still blinking at her, patiently waiting for an answer, small brush held in slightly chubby fingers, a fat drop of ink falling unnoticed onto the edge of scrap paper he used to practice his lines.  He had lived in her care for nearly four months, and he never ceased to amaze her.  The care and adoration he showered on Kikyo was no less than he might have shown her if she were truly his sister.  His mind was a wonderful thing, like a sponge absorbing all she could teach him.  And even though he was only just seven years old if the birthday he had given her was correct, he showed a sensitivity and consideration of emotion that oftentimes caught her off guard.

"My friend is having a problem.  She wants me to visit her." Kaede explained to the curious child.  She hated lying to the little boy, but she still managed to keep Kagome's whereabouts a secret by carefully avoiding the subject.  When he was old enough to understand the trouble between Youkai and Gifted then perhaps he could come to see why there would be no visiting Kagome in her new home.  Kikyo would likely be happier if she didn't know anything at all of her twin's existence, but that was a choice that wouldn't present itself for quite some time, as she was still only a baby.  "I am trying to think of what I might be able to do right now, as I cannot bear the idea of leaving Kikyo and you alone, and yet I wonder if the two of you are old enough for the journey."

"Before I came here, I was on lots of journeys." Miroku informed her solemnly, and he set his brush down carefully to prop his chin up in both hands, still blinking at her curiously.  "What's wrong with your friend?"

"It is complicated." Kaede was not entirely sure she could explain the situation Hanami was suffering through to a boy of seven who knew little of the world outside of his calligraphy and his small adopted family.  She still would not let Miroku go outside to play with other children, as the risk of his eyes being noticed here in Yuurei was simply too high.

"You aren't going to tell me." Miroku made a face that told her exactly what he thought of her withholding information from him.  "Kaede, how come you do that?"

"What do I do, small one?" Kaede asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable under his accusing glare.  Surprising to learn how intimidating a seven-year-old could be when he really wanted to.

"You talk about things but you stop before you're done." Miroku told her, his voice slightly petulant.  "If you can't tell me things then why do you even talk about them?"

"Miroku, you must understand that there are things in this world that are not happy and nice.  There are things that small children should not have the burden of knowing, as it will only cause them undue worry." Kaede explained as judiciously as possible.

"So, I'm never going to understand if you don't ever tell me." He pointed out, and Kaede released a sigh of defeat.  She could not believe she was arguing with a little boy and losing so miserably.

"Alright then.  I will make you a promise, Miroku." She decided after a short time.  "I will promise to never keep secrets from you, but only if you make me a promise as well."

"What is it?" Miroku was smiling slightly, a little unsure as he obviously thought that whatever he would have to exchange for this amazing privilege of what seemed to be endless knowledge was a bit daunting for such a very small child.

"You have to promise that you will always believe what I tell you, no matter if you doubt the truth of my words or not, because I swear that I will never lie to you." Kaede told him, and he scrambled to his feet, running and stumbling slightly to collapse in her lap, hugging her tightly.

"I promise!" his voice was muffled since his face was pressed into her neck, but she was still able to understand him perfectly well.  He wiggled around in his spot until he was more comfortably seated and then turned an expectant look on Kaede, who was still wondering just how to approach the topic without confusing Miroku completely.

"Alright then." Kaede wrapped one arm around Miroku's back and looked up at the ceiling as though she could find the answers in the thatching.  "My friend is named Hanami.  Do you remember the day that we met?"

"Yeah!" Miroku's face split in a wide smile, and Kaede had to answer the grin with one of her own before she continued in a soft voice.

"That day I had come back from visiting her in the country.  She was pregnant, you see, and it was giving her some difficulty." Miroku nodded knowingly at this.  After Mikomi, Kaede doubted the boy would ever take pregnancy as lightly as most men seemed to for the rest of his life.  "The baby has been born by now, and she wrote the other day to tell me that it was a girl, which is very good as she was hoping for a daughter.  Unfortunately, the little girl has purple eyes."

"So do I." Miroku pointed out.  "And Kikyo too."

"Yes, I know that you do." Kaede smiled at him.  "Do you want to know a secret?  My eyes are purple as well."  Miroku narrowed his eyes at her in disbelief, but he had apparently taken the promise seriously enough to stop short of calling her a liar outright.

"They look gray." He looked closer as though he might have been mistaken before.

"I can change them because I have Gifted powers." Kaede told him, and he blinked at her as though the idea sounded intriguing, but he was not quite familiar with the terminology used.  "Miroku, let me ask you a question.  Do you know of the country of Seiiki?  It is to the west of here."

"Mommy told me that was where she was born." Miroku's eyes lit up with pleasure.

"I was born there as well, Miroku." Kaede told him.  "Because your mother and I are both Gifted."

"What's a Gifted?" Miroku wanted to know.

"Do you know what Youkai are?" Kaede asked after considering how to explain it so he might best understand.

"Aren't they the ones in charge?" Miroku answered hesitantly.  "Dad said Youkai are money…sucking…uh…"

"Yes, well, that is close enough." Kaede laughed humorlessly.  "Youkai are the ruling class of Fukumaden, this country.  In the same way, Gifted are the ruling class of Seiiki.  But you see, Miroku, long ago there was a big country that was ruled over by normal humans.  It was called Mukashi, and in the days when it existed, Youkai and Gifted were feared and ostracized for their abilities.  In those days, strong Youkai had the ability to change into huge animals that were something like demon gods, great and powerful and to be feared.  Gifted had the power to control Youkai, but at the same time, Youkai were the only beings who stood a fighting chance against Gifted magic.  But then the country of Mukashi had a great conflict, and in the end, only the strong survived.  At that time, Youkai and Gifted were able to reverse the ruling classes of the country, and they became the leaders of a terrified human populace.  At first, this worked out well enough.  Youkai and Gifted compliment each other so well that they actually began to improve upon the government of Mukashi.  And then there was another problem.  You see, there are many different stories about what went wrong exactly, but whether the Youkai could not stand being repressed by Gifted magic or if the Gifted were too arrogant to allow association with Youkai, the two classes began a horrible feud that escalated into a civil war.  It was so bloody that soon enough, both sides realized that in the end, they would be left with no country at all to control, and so a rough agreement was reached.  The country of Mukashi was split in two, and that is how Seiiki and Fukumaden were formed.  Even now, however, the undying grudges between the two races make friendly relations between the nations impossible, and Youkai found in Seiiki are immediately put to death.  However, the same is true for Gifted found in Fukumaden.  And that is where the problem lies for us, Miroku."

"How come?" Miroku seemed slightly confused by all the political talk, but it seemed he had gotten the gist of it, and that was good enough for now.

"Because, my dear little boy, we are Gifted." Kaede explained to him.  "You can tell if you know what to look for, you see.  All Gifted are born with purple eyes like you and I and even little Kikyo.  Usually, there is also a mark like the one on Kikyo's back, and it makes leaving the country impossible for us.  At the same time, we must hide ourselves or risk death.  You see now why I hide my eye color and will not let you out to play with other children, Miroku?"

"But…if everyone knows that how come no one ever noticed me before?" Miroku wanted to know.

"Because you are now in the capital, Miroku.  In the country, I doubt that there would be anyone who knows the signs of a Gifted, it has been so long since they have even _seen_ one that they would have no idea where to start looking." Kaede told him patiently.  "When you are a little older, I will teach you how to control the power you were born with and show you how to hide your eyes just like mine.  They are the trouble, you see.  Unless you try to leave the country, no one will ever spot a Mark, as they have no reason to look for one.  But there are many soldiers in this city that would take a purple-eyed boy straight to the executioner as soon as they spotted him.  And that is why Hanami is worried now.  Her little girl is only half Gifted, just like you or Kikyo, and even though her first child looks like a normal human, her daughter has the purple eyes, and it is something that worries her."

"Well…" Miroku thought this over for a minute.  "If she's in the country too, why does she have to worry?"

"Because she is sick, Miroku." Kaede explained to him.  "Hanami was hurt very badly when she had her child, and she is worried about what might happen to her if she becomes pregnant again.  It could kill her, and then there would be no one left to explain to her daughter why she must spend the rest of her life far from Yuurei and she must never try to leave the country for any reason.  And of course, if she died then no one could teach her daughter how to hide her eyes as I taught Hanami when she was a little girl."

"So then what are you going to do?" Miroku seemed to think that Kaede had all the answers, and sometimes he almost convinced the old woman that it was true.  Almost, but not quite.

"For now…I think that the best course of action is for her to avoid any further pregnancies.  That would solve many problems, such as the risk of her dying so young and then leaving her daughter to grow up alone.  But I think she wanted to tell me of her troubles just in case something happened to her."  Kaede decided.  "If Hanami does, for some reason, have to leave this world, she is hoping that I will be able to care for her daughter, but it would not be something she could explain to her husband.  He does not know that she is Gifted."

"Why doesn't she tell him?" Miroku blinked at her again, and she ran her fingers through his slightly mussed black hair.

"If she told him…we do not know what might happen in that case." Kaede smiled weakly.  "It is truly a violent time in which we live, Miroku.  And so, you must always protect yourself and little Kikyo from discovery."

"I will." He looked so solemn, so sure.  She thought that he might have fully understood her.

She wished that he didn't have to know.

*****

The End (Of Part 1, That Is)


	3. Vision Blurring

I likey me the story.

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 2

*****

"What're you doing?" a little girl with bright purple eyes and glossy dark hair pulled back in a white ribbon asked an adolescent boy with dark hair pulled into a small ponytail at the nape of his neck.  He had his eyes squeezed shut as he held two fingers to his lips and mumbled fervently, an empty teacup in his other hand.

"Not now, Kikyo." He told her, returning his concentration to the task at hand, and the little girl watched him silently until he sighed and let his hand drop, his eyes fluttering open to reveal grey orbs.  "Are they grey?"

"Yep!" she nodded sharply after he lowered his face to where she could see better.  "Are you going out?"

"Yes, I am." He told the little girl.  "You can help Kaede in the garden while I am gone."

"I want to go with you." Kikyo spoke carefully.  She liked how Miroku sounded so very grown up when he spoke, and she tried her best to emulate his speech patterns, but it was hard to remember sometimes.  "I never get to leave the house."

"I know, Kikyo." Miroku paused, turning to lower himself so he was looking the six-year old in the eyes.  "And you must remember that no matter what happens, you are not to leave the house until you are old enough to learn how to change your eyes." Miroku indicated his own face with one hand, the other resting on Kikyo's small shoulder.

"But Miroku." Kikyo twisted her hands together, blinking up at him hopefully.  "It isn't fair.  I can't talk to other people.  I can't make friends."

"I am your friend, am I not?" Miroku asked her, his eyebrows raised expectantly.

"Yeah, you're my brother, though.  That's different." Kikyo attempted to explain.  "I like all your stories and stuff…but I wanna see the world, too.  Not just books and things."

"Ah, but is the world impressive enough for a mind as sharp as this?" he tapped her head gently.  "Will it be ready for a face so fresh, eyes so bright with knowledge and curiosity?  Will it possibly be able to satisfy your expectations, I wonder?"

"You only say stuff like that when I don't get what I want." Kikyo pointed out his avoidance of the issue.

"Kikyo, listen to me.  When you are older, I will explain everything to you.  And you will agree that the world is not really such a wonderful place all the time.  Sometimes it is better to stay hidden than be faced with something so cruel." Miroku told her, his brow furrowing slightly.  There was so much that the little girl had yet to learn.  It had been easier to let her believe Miroku was her brother, and that their parents had left them with Kaede…and yet, it troubled him.  Was it right to lie, even if it was to keep that innocent gleam in those precious eyes?  "But until then, will you stay in the garden and help Kaede?  She is really too old to do all the work on her own, you know."

"I know.  I'll help her." Kikyo nodded slightly, and Miroku kissed her brow.

"There is a good girl.  I will return shortly." He waved before leaving, a knapsack over his shoulder and a small bag of coins tucked into his robes.  Kikyo sighed dramatically as she watched him leave through a gap in the front curtains.  There were so many people out there.  They must all have different stories, and it made her wonder how they could all be so bad.  Did Miroku know that they were dangerous?  What had happened to him that made him so much smarter than her?  He could read and write much better, but she hadn't had as many years as him to study yet.  Maybe it was best to believe him.  He was a nice brother, why would he lock her up unless there was a good reason?  Determined not to upset Miroku, the one person she most admired in the world, Kikyo turned from the window and set out to the backyard where Kaede was weeding.

"Kikyo, why do you frown so?" Kaede brushed off her hands and stood, facing the little girl in consideration.

"Miroku left again." Kikyo admitted.  "He always leaves without me." Kaede smiled and reached forward, scooping the little girl up in her arms and kissing her little cheeks.

"Don't be sad, child." She told the little girl who had come to mean so much to her.  "He will return soon enough.  Until then, would you like to spend time with me?"

"Miroku said I should help you." She explained, and Kaede laughed slightly.

"He is a very responsible young man, it is true." Kaede told the girl, setting her down and moving back toward her weeding.  "I have never in my life trusted anyone so completely as I do Miroku.  He is a true blessing to me, and I know that even though I am old, when I am gone, he will take care of all my affairs."

"You aren't _that_ old." Kikyo told the woman, not wanting to think of Kaede going away for good like the people in the stories sometimes did.  It was a very sad thing, and as she understood it, that was where her parents had gone.  It would be horrible for Kaede to leave her as well. "Does Miroku really know all about you?"

"More than anyone else.  Some things he has not asked about, because he respects my privacy.  He is a good boy, and will soon make a very good man." Kaede told the girl as they both set about pulling up weeds.  And then something very strange happened.  Kikyo was enjoying spending time with Kaede, even if it meant that she was dangerously close to worms, one of her least favorite things in the world, but that was all right.  Then, Kaede seemed to slow down a bit.  Kikyo didn't notice at first, thinking that Kaede was tired, as she had been working out her all morning.  But when the woman let out a gurgling noise as though she were choking on something, Kikyo's eyes went wide in alarm as she turned to ask what was the matter.

Before she could ask, Kaede collapsed in the dirt.

----------

Miroku came home with groceries to a sobbing Kikyo and a bedridden Kaede.  He did not understand what had happened while he was gone, but Kaede had taught him enough about her art that he was able to discern the problem soon enough.  Kaede had a very old body, and her heart had been giving her problem for some time.  There was a special brew that she drank every morning, but it seemed that she was simply too close to the end.  Nonetheless, he quickly set about making a stronger version of Kaede's heart medicine, meant to help her clear whatever difficulties she was experiencing.  After he had finished, Kaede asked the sobbing Kikyo to go outside for a bit and pick her some cherries.  The request was obviously an excuse to get her out of the room, and it only added to Miroku's worry.

"Drink this." He handed her the hot cup, and she smiled at him, nodding and smelling it.

"You'll be able to take over easily once I'm gone." She told him.  "You are so smart, Miroku, and so talented.  You will make a wonderful healer.  Do not let this discourage you."

"You will be fine, Kaede." Miroku insisted as she sipped the tea.  "Do not speak as though you were dying."

"Miroku, I realized that I wanted to tell you something." She told him, ignoring his words.  "I had forgotten, and I always thought there would be a better time, a more opportune moment…and yet, it seems that time is running short.  So I must tell you about Kagome."

"You won't…Kagome?" Miroku's face went pale at the name.  He had never asked about the girl, the missing twin.  He had always assumed that it was something Kaede did not want to talk about, and that he should therefore let her keep her secret.  "What…about her?"

"Her father was Musouka ka'Neko, and he was the eldest son of the ka'Neko household." Kaede did not have to explain who the ka'Neko family was to an apprentice healer who had lived in Yuurei for six years.  He had learned much in those years.  "Before she died, I asked Mikomi what she would do if her child had Youkai signs.  She said that she would have it live with the ka'Neko family, and so…"

"Kagome's…living there?" Miroku's eyes popped, and he forgot about his propriety and formality for once.  "She's living in a Youkai noble home?  Is…she okay?"

"They love her, and they suspect nothing of the truth.  She looked exactly like a Youkai child, they would never know that she was half Gifted, as she was never taught how to use that side of herself, if indeed she ever developed any sort of power."  Kaede explained.  "I want you to know, Miroku.  If someday you find it right…tell Kikyo.  She's too young now…but someday."

"Someday, we will tell her together." Miroku insisted, and Kaede laughed weakly, setting down her empty cup.

"I love you, Miroku.  I don't know if I've told you…I think of you two as the children I never had.  I am sorry I could not stay with you longer.  The time I've had with you is some of the best in my life." Kaede told the thirteen-year-old.  "You…I want you two to be happy and to care for each other.  She's not your real sister…but still…"

"I love Kikyo better than I could love any true sister, you know that." Miroku was fighting back tears.  This seemed so final, he didn't know what to say.

"And…if ever anyone should call for me…would you?" Kaede asked him, her face strained.  Miroku recalled all the Gifted, fleeing the country, hiding from discovery, learning to live in Fukumaden, begging for help, always ending up at Kaede's door.  He remembered so many times when she had solved all their problems, like some benevolent goddess of mercy.  How could he be as strong and wise as her?

"I will try.  Anything I can do to help our people." Miroku promised, twin tears spilling down a face too solemn for his thirteen years.

"You are my son…the son of my heart." Kaede reached up, brushing her fingers over his cheek, wiping away one of the wet trails.  "And my closest friend.  I thank the gods that brought you to me.  You brightened my last days.  Thank you."  There was a silence broken only by a stifled sob that shook Miroku's young shoulders.  "And tell…tell Kikyo I love her as well."

"I…will." He promised.  Her face seemed to clear then, as though all her worries were erased by those two words, and he bit his lip before blurting out.  "I love you too."

"I know." She smiled before letting her eyes close.  Miroku let the grief take over then, wracking his body in great sobs as he collapsed on her still chest.

"I brought cher—" Kikyo froze as she took in the scene.  Miroku was crying.  Miroku never cried.  "Miroku?"

"She's…sleeping right now." He wiped his eyes and looked up at the little girl standing next to where he sat.  She frowned at him, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.

"You're lying." She accused.

"I'm sorry." He nodded, a sob wracking through him once more.  "She's…she wanted you to know.  She loves you."

"She's not…" Kikyo felt foolish as tears filled her eyes.  Miroku would think she was such a baby…but then, he was crying as well.  Maybe it was okay when someone died?

"I'm sorry." He hugged her so tight, the cherries fell from her hand, bouncing and rolling across the floor as they both mourned together in privacy the woman who had been mother and teacher and protector to them for the last six years.

----------

Miroku was true to his word.  He took care of everything that was required once Kaede had passed away.  The arrangements for her cremation were made and quickly carried out, and before much time had passed, there were two urns on the backyard shrine.  Every morning, both Kikyo and Miroku paid their respects to the little shrine, and Miroku began to teach Kikyo more about reading and writing as well as history and her true nature.  He would wait until she was ten to show her the way of turning her eyes, but until then, she could learn the basics of controlling and manipulating her spirit, as well as the various reasons why a little girl with purple eyes did not go into the streets of Yuurei.

He cared for the affairs of the household while saving up extra money in hopes of attending the University when he turned sixteen, as he knew that Kaede had intended.  When he found how much Kaede had already saved up, it made matters considerably easier, but he was still very careful, and spent all hours on call healing for families of all types, making as much money as he could so that Kikyo would be well provided for even when he wasn't able to work full time, as a University student had very little free time.

And so, time passed by, and occasionally a refugee would turn up at their doorstep, looking for help from the legendary Kaede, and learning that she had left behind a teenager who was surprisingly well-spoken and learned, one who was actually able to fulfill all their needs and helped them in any way he possibly could.  It was now spoken in the secret avenues where the unwanted people walked that Miroku was the one who could help you, he could save you from the trap, the inescapable horror that was this country.

And life was good, in its own way.  Miroku was happy enough just to be with Kikyo, the girl who was his sister at heart.  He still couldn't bring himself to tell her the truth, even that small piece of it.  It seemed too cruel to tell the girl that was his most important person that she was alone and that she would likely never live to see any members of her family.  And he worried that if she knew the truth, she would not hold him so dear.  He worried that she would no longer love him, that she would brush him aside and never again look at him as though he were her hero, as though he could do anything at all, and that nothing was too difficult for him to handle.

He needed someone to believe in him, and he had stopped believing the day Kaede died.  And so, he held onto what he had, and he watched her grow, and he worried, and he waited, and he planned, and he hoped, and he wondered.

And then one day, he received a letter from a man he had never met.  But the letter spoke of a woman whose name he had heard before.  It was addressed to Kaede.

Hanami had died, and her last wish was that her daughter live with Kaede.

Could she come to get the girl?

Miroku began packing his things.

*****

The End (Of Part 2, That Is)


	4. Noise Fading

Oh boy, now things start to get messy…er…I guess.  Yeah.  Oh, and someone asked about ages.  Yeah, I thought that could be confusing, which is why if you look back at that chapter, you'll see that I state both of their ages, even though I could have _technically_ told you only one of the kid's ages, since she was born when Miroku was seven.  But, for those of you who didn't see it, here are the lines:

         "I know, Kikyo." Miroku paused, turning to lower himself so he was looking the six-year-old in the eyes.  

"I love you, Miroku.  I don't know if I've told you…I think of you two as the children I never had.  I am sorry I could not stay with you longer.  The time I've had with you is some of the best in my life." Kaede told the thirteen-year-old.  

So yes, I did tell you how old they were.  You have to just watch for it.  And seriously, I don't mean to sound mean about it, but this story isn't one of those ones that hands you everything in plain display, so if you're missing something like that right now, you might have some trouble with the plot later on.  I don't want to spell everything out, but I will answer people's questions because I understand that this is a complicated story, and I don't want you guys to get lost in small things like that.  So try your best!

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 3

*****

Miroku looked out the coach's window for what had to be the tenth time in as many minutes, shifting his awkward, lanky limbs in his seat.  He knew it would not make him stop worrying, and he would only continue to replay his parting with Kikyo the day before over and over again.  He was terrified to leave her alone…and yet, she was still too young to hide herself, and so she could not hope to come with him.  So he had done his best to warn her.  At least she understood the difference between Youkai, humans, and herself.  Maybe that knowledge and his stern orders would be enough.

_"And I have purchased enough food for two weeks.  I will be back before one has passed, but I just wanted to be sure." Miroku explained.  "Just be sure to do your prayers and writing practice every day…and do not fall behind on studying.  I will quiz you to be sure you have not fallen back while I was gone.  And be sure to water the garden and do your prayers every morning."_

_         "I know." Kikyo sounded nervous, anxious, scared, and a bit impatient.  "I won't forget."_

_         "Promise that you will not go out, no matter what happens." Miroku demanded for the fifth time that morning._

_         "I'm eight years old, I'm not a baby." She told him finally.  "But yes, I promise I won't go out.  I'll be looking forward to your return."_

_         "Be good while I'm gone, little sister." He kissed her forehead and then was gone._

He knew that she would be fine when he returned.  Just as he was far more responsible than average fifteen-year-old boys, Kikyo had learned early on to shoulder her own share of obligation.  It was living in the country that hated them so acutely, he thought.  Surely children should not be refugees in the country where they were born.  And yet, that was the lot they had been handed.  At times, Miroku wanted to hate his long-dead mother for handing him such a raw deal, but he could not hate the woman he had not seen since he was only a small child.  He could not hate that fuzzy memory with eyes like his and a kind, gentle smile.

His thoughts drifted as the village he was traveling to came into view, and soon enough, it seemed that he had arrived, letter kept safely in the fold of robes where his coin bag rested heavily, a small bag slung carelessly over his shoulder.  It contained very little; Miroku liked to travel light.  He stepped out of the carriage, gave a respectful nod to the carter, and then took a deep breath of the fresh country air.

Almost like a place he had once called home.

Determined, he set out to accomplish his mission.

----------

Kikyo was behaving wonderfully.

She had studied just as though Miroku was there, looking over her shoulder and adding in his own comments, correcting the strokes of her writing, explaining the origin of characters and the history of this word or that, giving her helpful ways to remember names and dates that she somehow doubted would ever be useful.  And yet, they were important to Miroku, so they became important to her as well.

She had watered the garden as usual, swept the dust and leaves from the tiny backyard shrine, continued her morning prayers diligently, eaten three meals a day, and always spent at least one hour waiting.  Just waiting for Miroku to return.  Then she would think of something else she could do.  Some cleaning, a storybook that she wanted to reread, a bit of additional studying, a character that she wanted to perfect, some poetry she hoped to copy down.  Anything to distract from the quiet loneliness.  She realized that even when he was home, Miroku spent most of the day and quite a bit of the evening being called out to heal various patients, but it seemed very unfair to her that she should go so long without even glimpsing his face.  It only made her that much more determined to practice her meditations and learn to control her spirit so that she could go out with him when he left.  And then they would never be separated.

Kikyo was thinking about this while weeding the garden halfheartedly when something extraordinary happened.  It was something that had never happened to Kikyo in all the eight years of her life.  She had glanced up at a bird on the fence post when suddenly, a _cat_ leapt up onto the fence as well.

This might not seem strange or wonderful to most children, but Kikyo, while she had seen _pictures_ of cats, and read about all sorts of animals, including cats, had never seen one in real life before.  At first, she was wondering if she had identified it incorrectly, but it turned to her, tilted its cream-colored head to one side, and let out a cute, short meow.  Kikyo was so amazed at this that she dropped her work and immediately leapt to her feet.  She had heard that cats liked to be petted, and that they were very soft.  This was something she had never been able to test, but now…now…

"Hello, cat." She addressed it, thinking that was proper.  "May I pet you?"

The cat tilted its head to the other side, jumped onto Kikyo's side of the fence, and meowed again.  Kikyo assumed that was a yes.

So she walked toward the cat, knowing from experience that birds would oftentimes be spooked when she approached quickly, and she did not want to lose this wonderful chance.  "I have never met a cat before." She told it, hoping that it would stay if she continued to speak.  She reached out a small hand, and the cat actually ran up to her, butting its head against the hand eagerly.  "So, you _do_ like to be petted…" she felt her face move into a smile as the cat let out an extraordinary noise while she continued stroking its head.  "Is that…purring?"

In answer, the cat blinked at her, and Kikyo giggled with pleasure before lowering herself for better access.  The cat did not seem to like this idea, and it jumped away from her, back onto the fence.  "Oh, cat, please do not go.  You see, my brother left and I have no one to talk to."  The cat did not seem overly sympathetic, as it simply walked toward the front end of the fence, stopping at the small gate and leaping off to leave her alone again.

And then Kikyo did something very foolish.

She ran to the gate, unbolted it, and raced after the cat.

----------

"You aren't her." The man was unreasonable, stubborn to a fault, and unwilling to give up his daughter to a teenager who _claimed_ to be Kaede's heir.  "Hanami said to give my daughter to Kaede.  Not to a boy.  It wouldn't be right to let some boy live with her anyway."

"Please.  I am perfectly reputable." Miroku was insulted by the man's insinuations.  So _what_ if he was a bit quick to smile and wink at every pretty girl he passed on the street?  That didn't make him a man of questionable character.  "I have the letter right here."

"You showed me, but I won't give her to you." The man was adamant.  "She's the last thing I have to remind me of her mother."

"You have a son, as well, I was told." Miroku blinked at the man in question, and he narrowed his eyes.

"Anyone coulda told you that."  He answered after some thought.  "What else you know?"

"Your wife was not from Fukumaden." Miroku knew that well enough.  "And she had grey eyes."

"And?" he was clearly unimpressed.

"Your daughter has purple eyes, brighter than anything you've ever seen." He supplied easily.

"Everyone knows that." The man snorted slightly.

"Sir, I respect your love for your daughter, but she is really not safe here."  Miroku tried giving the man a piece of truth.  "Only I can help her now."

"She doesn't need _your_ help." The man's back became stiff.  "I take good care of my kids."  Miroku sighed deeply.  There was no choice.  He _had_ to tell the man.  But he was sure…he loved his daughter.  He would not betray her, no matter what.  Hopefully.

"I need to get her out of the country." He began.

"Why?!" the man was furious.  That was _not_ what he wanted to hear.

"Because, she is Gifted." Miroku continued calmly.  "And anyone from the capital with knowledge of such things would recognize it the moment they saw her eyes.  She is not safe in this country."

"Nice try." The man chuckled nervously.  "Gifted don't just get born from two normal folks."

"Hanami was Gifted." Miroku told the man.  "She used a special technique to keep her eyes grey.  I use that same technique.  Kaede taught it to us both, and that is why Hanami wanted to leave Rin, who shows the signs, to live with Kaede, who could help her if she was still alive.  She is gone, but she passed her knowledge to me.  Please, sir.  Do you not love your daughter?"

"You…you're serious?" it was hard for him to swallow.  Not that Miroku had expected him to accept the idea easily.  "And you…you're Gifted too?  Can…you prove it?"

"I suppose." Miroku sighed slightly.  He really did not enjoy parlor tricks, but in this case…concentrating, he formed a ball of purple light in his hand.  "Satisfied?" he arched an eyebrow at the gaping man.

"And you say…my daughter…is half?" the man asked.

"So is your son, he simply does not show the signs." Miroku told him.  "I was also only half Gifted.  On my mother's side as well.  I can understand your daughter in a way very few can.  And do not worry that I will be living with her alone.  Back in Yuurei, I left my younger sister, and she is the same age as your daughter."

"Uh…but if…if you take her, will I get to see her again?" he was close to giving in, if only out of shock.

"She will visit you occasionally once I teach her to hide her eyes.  It is not safe for our kind to travel in the open country of Fukumaden." Miroku explained.  "I can tell you that she will write as often as she pleases.  It is not prison.  Think of it as school."

"School…"

"Shall I take her with me, then?" Miroku inquired as the man stared at the floor.  He blinked and nodded, nearly running out of the room.  He was gone for so long, Miroku wondered if he wouldn't return at all.

"She came for me?  But father, I don't _want_ to leave!" a young girl, her black hair in a small side ponytail that let the rest fall down her back entered the room behind the ashen-faced man.  She blinked at Miroku momentarily and then turned to her father again.  "That's not an old lady.  That's a kid."

"I am older than you, thank you." Miroku corrected politely.  "My name is Miroku, and I am Kaede's heir.  Kaede died two years ago."

"I don't want to go with you.  I love my daddy and my brother." She told him firmly.  "Tell him I don't have to go, daddy.  Mommy died, and you guys can't do _anything_ without her.  So you need me.  Mommy wouldn't _really_ want me to leave you alone here."

"I think…it's best this way." The father managed a shaky smile before looking up at Miroku.  "Miroku, this is my daughter, Rin.  I ask that you watch after her from now on."

"I shall do my best." Miroku bowed formally.  "It is nice to meet you, Rin."

"Go and leave.  I'm not going with you." Rin pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You have to go, Rin." The father tried for firm, but he sounded only vaguely confused.

"Rin, may I speak to you frankly?" Miroku asked, and the girl blinked at him in answer, so he continued.  "When I was just a little younger than you, my own mother died.  I grew up with Kaede, and she taught me all kinds of things that I can teach you.  Do you go to school?"

"Yes…" Rin still seemed rather hesitant about all this.

"Well, as I have told your father, I am taking you to a sort of school.  And there is another girl there who is your age."  Miroku tried to tempt her.  "She is my little sister, and she would love another little girl to play with.  Would you like that?"

"Um…" Rin looked confused now.  "But I love my daddy."

"I never said you did not.  And do not think you can never see him again.  I will let you visit him, and you can write him every day if you wish.  Does that sound okay to you?" Miroku's voice was soft, calm, and mature enough to impress even the shell-shocked father.

"Daddy?" Rin was still unsure.

"Daddy wants you to go with Miroku." He told his daughter, his hands shaking as he patted her head and kissed her.  "Your brother can help you pack, and you can leave any time Miroku is ready.  How does that sound?"

"If…that's okay." Rin turned to Miroku and smiled brightly.  "It's nice to meet you, Miroku!"

*****

The End (Of Part 3, That Is)


	5. Lights Dim

Down to the earth I fell, with dripping wings.  Heavy things won't fly…okay, I need to stop singing and start writing.  Aaaaand…go!

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 4

*****

Kikyo did not think twice about her decision to chase after the cat until it reached its final destination, a wealthy looking home, where a girl of about her age met the small animal and called out to her.  Before, when it was just the cat, Kikyo had been curious.  But now she was facing the possibility of meeting another little girl.  And for some reason, all she could hear in her head were Miroku's horrid accounts of what was thought to happen to Gifted captured in Fukumaden.  Was any of it true?  No one lived to tell the tale, so no one could be sure.  One thing _was_ sure, though.  Kikyo did not want to stick around and find out.  So she turned and ran back the same way she had come.

Roughly.

It seemed that she had not been paying very careful attention to landmarks and directions and turns and street names and storefronts on her very first trip out of the house since she was born.  Now Kikyo was helplessly lost, and her concentration was going to two main causes.  The first was a desperate attempt to recognize _something_, and the second was her determination to not start crying.  Every time she started to cry, Miroku would tell her that it was childish to cry for no reason.  The only time he had told her it was alright was when Kaede died, and obviously no one was dead at this point, so there should not be any crying.

The only problem was that no matter how she tried to stay calm and tried to keep moving and all of that, she was just as lost as she had started out being.  Then she developed a brilliant plan.  Miroku was a healer, and he had already explained to her that lots of people knew him by name just because there were so few healers in Yuurei, and he was definitely a good one, she was sure.  So if she acted like she _needed_ a healer, specifically Miroku, she could ask a storekeeper or someone that seemed nice where his house was.  The only problem with _this_ was that she was scared of people, having only ever talked with Miroku and Kaede.  Of course, there had been the visitors, Gifted who were on the run or needed a place to stay for the night or other such things, but Kikyo always stayed away from them, terrified that she would look foolish and shame Miroku, who tried so hard to help her grow up into a proper lady.  Until she was confident in her ability to _be_ that lady, Kikyo had decided not to speak with the visitors no matter what they said to her, and so if she was called shy, at least it did not make her seem horrible.  The only other people she knew were people in books.  Little boys and girls who had adventures, historical figures, princesses and warriors and wizards and things like that.  But they were imaginary.

Everyone around her was talking.  Maybe one of the children…there were two boys just about her age leaving a teashop together.  They were dressed in very nice clothes, so they were probably rich.  She wondered if they were nice, as they seemed at the very least to be friendly with each other, patting one another on the back and laughing rather louder than she had imagined the cultured gentlemen in her books to do it.  But then, they were only boys, and she was only a girl.  She tried to think very hard how to introduce herself properly, but it seemed so scary, she just stood, staring at them with wide eyes until the shorter one noticed her and said something to his companion.  They both laughed and changed course slightly to approach her.

"Hey, you want something?" the shorter one demanded.  Only then did she notice something that had previously escaped her notice.  Pointed ears.  They _both_ had pointed ears.  And claws.  Youkai.  She felt like fainting right in the middle of the street.  "You keep staring as though you know us, stupid girl."

"Shinga, leave her alone, she's only a little girl." The taller boy told his companion.  If she had not been so terrified she could think of nothing but escape, Kikyo would have been reassured by his friendly smile.  "You look like you might be lost.  We have our driver waiting right over there." He pointed to a nearby carriage.  "My brother's insulted you, so I think that we should take you wherever you want."

"Kouga, you're no youkai.  You always act nice to people like that, stupid peasants." Shinga snorted.  "Look how dirty she is, if we let her sit in the coach, dad would have a fit."

"That's stupid," Kouga shook his head.  "I'm sorry, he's still too young to understand there's a world beyond him."

"Only a year younger than you." Shinga shot back.

"But still completely stupid." Kouga retorted.  They were facing each other, and the terrified girl took her chance, running away as quickly as her feet would carry her, the two Youkai boys still arguing far behind her.

She ran straight into two Heisotsu standing at leisure on the corner of the boulevard.  They turned to her, Imperial insignia glinting in the sunlight, and Kikyo felt her eyes go incredibly large.  Miroku had told her that the Heisotsu were the Imperial guards, and that they were one of the few trained city officials that could easily recognize Gifted signs.  She panicked as everything seemed to move incredibly slow.  They were turning, one muttering something about annoying girls on the wrong side of the city, and they would see her, and they would know what she was.  So she did the first thing that came to mind.

She lowered her head and stared straight at her shoes, hoping that the forelocks falling out of her ribbon were enough to hide her eyes from them.  Would they see?  Would they know?  She wanted to scream, but she knew that right now was a time to be sneaky, and screaming was never sneaky in the least.

"Look at dis liddle 'un, will ya?" she didn't know which guard was speaking, since she was so concentrated on not looking up.  "Looks like da ting ain't eaten in weeks."

"Naw, jes' a lil' gal's all." The other guard sounded rather jovial, and Kikyo felt hope that they would just let her go on by.  "No, my gal's near 'er size.  'Ow old're you, lil'n?"  Kikyo took almost a minute to try and decipher their horrible lack of enunciation.  Did _all_ city men talk like this?  It was ridiculous.  She knew that Miroku would never sound so garbled, and the two youkai boys she'd just seen had been clear enough.  Perhaps it was just something unique to city officials.

"Ey, ya better say summut when we asks ya sumtin." The first guard seemed to have a slightly different accent than his friend.  Miroku had told her about accents, and he had tried to imitate a few for her, but she found that it was really no substitute for the real thing.  "Ey!" suddenly, she was kicked down, and she realized the men had been asking her something.  What was it again?  Her age, that was it.  As she tried to brush herself up and stand without looking up, another idea struck Kikyo.  If she lied, saying she was seven instead of eight, surely they would believe her.  After all, they seemed to find her rather scrawny, and as much as that grated on her nerves, if she could turn it to her advantage by making herself seem utterly helpless…why, if seven was good, surely they would believe a further exaggeration?

"I am only six, sirs." She wondered belatedly if she should sound less proper.  What would they think of her since she had no horrible accent?  Perhaps that she was just a normal little girl and of no concern.  That was what she hoped.  "I apologize for running into you, I was not watching the way ahead as I ought to."  Of course, an apology for what had happened could not possibly hurt, and it might make them lose interest.

"Aw, 'ear 'er talkin' fancy like?" she thought that was the second guard.  He had a horrible habit of dropping his h's right off the front of words as though he forgot they were there.  "Wud a purdy princess."

"Ain't it true!" the other guard laughed roughly.  "Look at da clothes, she ain't Youkai, dat's fer sure.  Whatcha doin' on dis side o' da river, girly?"

"I…am lost." She admitted.  Maybe they could actually _help_ her!  "Actually, I was looking for a healer named Miroku.  Would either of you know the way to his home?"

"Ahahaha!  Terr'ble, 'earin' talk like th'kind she does out o' a lil' street urchin like 'er." The happy guard was now laughing at her, and Kikyo was privately fuming.  How could those two…brutes have the audacity to make fun of the way _she_ spoke when _they_ sounded as if they were both talking with mouthfuls of bread?  It was ridiculous, really.

"Fink maybe she's one o' dose maid girlies wut all da rich Youkai gots?" they were having so much fun at her expense, but she could not possibly scold them.  First of all, they were much bigger than her.  Secondly, they outnumbered her.  Thirdly, she just wanted to escape before they realized what she was and chopped her head off in the middle of the street or some other such horrible fate.  She should have _never_ petted that cat in the first place.

Kikyo began crying.

"Ey, lookit ya did!" the second guard was accusing his companion as she tried to stem the flow, but she had just had such a horrible day, and it was all too much for her little mind to handle.  "C'mon then, no need ta cry'er nuthin."

"Straight'n up, den, liddle 'un!" the first guard sounded teasing as he reached down and physically forced her to lift her head.  "Gimme a rag er sumtin, Cap'n."  He turned as he held her head up and Kikyo squeezed her eyes shut, realizing that if he looked back and saw them, her ruse would be spoiled.  "Lookit, she's jes' a baybee," he sounded slightly sympathetic as he dabbed roughly at Kikyo's face with a large rag that she personally thought smelled rather foul.  "Now, lemme see a smile, girly!  We's jes kidden wid ya."

Kikyo was so relieved that they would leave her alone that she actually _did_ smile.  However, she opened her eyes when she did so and gave the guards a perfect glimpse of two large, purple eyes.  She didn't realize her mistake until they both cursed and the captain pulled out something, fastening her hands behind her back.  As soon as she realized what was going on, she screamed out loud and tried desperately to escape, but before she got in much of a struggle, she was hit sharply on the head and fell unconscious immediately.

"Well den, best dake diss'n back at da Palace, huh, Cap'n?"

"Yup, purdy lil' monster all th'same.  Best show this'n to 'er 'ighness."

"Ya tink she'll wann'er?"

"Def'nitely."

----------

"Thanks for carrying all my things." Rin was trying very hard to be on her best behavior, so she thanked the polite boy that had escorted her all the way to the capital of Fukumaden when he scooped up both of her tightly packed suitcases.

"What kind of gentleman would I be if I made a lady such as yourself carry all of this when you have only just arrived in Yuurei moments ago as my honored guest?" Miroku's flowery language reminded Rin of her mother, and at the same time, it was just a little over the top, making her laugh and forget her worries.  "Besides all that, you graciously carried my book, I had to return the favor." He nodded to the leather bound volume that Rin had offered to carry when she saw that Miroku intended to heft her bags all the way to his house.  Her home, now.  It all seemed so strange, but it was like an adventure in a fairy tale, and Rin had always loved fairy tales.

"It's not heavy at all." She smiled, trying very hard to act like a proper little lady would and not start skipping ahead of Miroku.  It was very difficult, but she managed to only walk with a slight bounce in her step.  "So, will your sister be home when we get there?"

"Kikyo will surely be waiting, as she is always in the house." Miroku told Rin, not wanting to say too much when they were still in the streets.  "She is too young to go out on her own quite yet."

"I guess not…this is such a big place.  How do you keep from getting lost?" she wanted to know.

"Ah, that has always been a problem.  In fact, I know a man who had a street map tattooed onto the inside of his eyelids to rectify the situation." Miroku's voice was serious, but he winked at her, letting her know that he was only joking, so she burst into laughter.

"No you don't!" she had decided after about eight hours of knowing him that Miroku was a very nice person and that he would definitely make a good friend and a fun teacher.  She still wasn't sure what he was going to teach her, as he hadn't wanted to talk about it on the coach back.  He had, however, told her lengthy stories about his sister and Rin felt as though she already knew the girl.  It would be fun to live with another girl her age, almost as though she had a sister.

"Too smart for me, Rin." Miroku heaved a sigh before he brightened and quickened the pace slightly.  "It's just up ahead here.  I know that you will feel…"  and then he stopped short, and Rin looked up at him, her little face pinching in confusion.

"What?" she blinked up at him as he stared straight ahead, his mouth slightly open, his eyes wide and shocked.

"The gate…never mind." He moved forward again, chuckling nervously as he pulled the gate open from where it had been hanging ajar.  "It's just odd.  The gate is always closed, you see.  I was surprised for a moment."

"You're silly, Miroku." Rin was pleased that nothing was really wrong.  She followed Miroku, looking around at the home, the lawn, the neatly kept property.  "It's kind of small, but it looks really cute." She finally decided.

"I am so pleased that you approve, dear Rin." Miroku chuckled as he set down her bags at the door.  "Now just one moment, and I will pretend to look for my key.  However, I expect that I will not be able to get it to the lock before Kikyo beats me to it.  She gets very lonely when I leave for longer than usual, you see.  That is why she will be so much better off making friends with a girl like you, Rin.  I am sure you two will get along wonderfully." He produced the key, frowning slightly as he put it in the door and turned.

"Maybe she's sleeping." Rin suggested helpfully, and Miroku laughed nervously again.

"Indeed, quite true.  I left her with a whole house to take care of, after all.  Poor dear must be nearly exhausted from her chores." Miroku eased the door open, picking up the bags and gesturing for Rin to enter ahead of him.  "Ladies first."

"Thanks." She smiled again, stepping into the little home and looking around.  It was small, yes, but she could already see there was a large garden in the back, and it looked simply lovely.  "I think I'll be happy here." She surmised as Miroku closed the door.

"I am sure you will be, dear Rin.  I want you to feel that this is your home as well, and that Kikyo and I are your family.  Always feel free to talk to either…" he stepped into the other room as he spoke, and when he reappeared, he looked rather nervous.  "Odd, she is not in our room.  She must be in the garden." He gestured for Rin to follow him as he walked toward the back of the little house, and when she caught up to him at the back door, he looked like he had suddenly swallowed his tongue, the panic on his face was so thick.

"Miroku?" Rin did not want to add to the problem, but it was a worry.  "Where is she?"

"I…do not know."

*****

The End (Of Part 4, That Is)


	6. Eyes Heavy

You're so pretty in white…pretty when you're faithful…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 5

*****

"Listen to me now, little brat, you'd better not talk back when her Highness comes to see you, and you just stand straight and don't look up at her face unless she tells you, it's proper respect, you know." An old woman who had been scrubbing Kikyo clean only an hour ago was now styling her hair prettily, having already dressed the girl in a fine outfit that was made of something so smooth and soft, she had never felt fabric so wonderfully luxuriant.  She thought it might be silk, but she was far too afraid to ask anyone anything.  She was still waiting to have her head chopped off, and yet all they had done in the time since she'd been captured was lock her in a dungeon with only five other individuals, and then, after a few days, they had pulled her out and hustled her up into a beautifully decorated and furnished room.  Kikyo secretly wondered if she was really in the Palace.  She had heard something of that sort on her way up, but it seemed rather unbelievable.  Why would they let a child they knew was Gifted in the Youkai Palace?  It didn't make any sense, unless they cut their heads off _in_ the Palace.  Perhaps it was some sort of entertainment for the royalty here.  She had read a story once where the courtiers had engaged in such tasteless entertainment, but it all seemed very foolish to her.  She remembered bringing it to Miroku's attention.

_"This book is silly." She had told him, dropping the heavy tome in his lap._

_"Why is that, Kikyo?" he recovered from the extra weight on his legs quickly, shifting the book open as she took up her favorite position when he read to her, curled up against his legs, her head cradled against his knees as he patted her dark hair absently._

_"The queen was putting people to death, and when she did, all the courtiers would show up to watch them die.  They would eat and drink and have fun like it was a good time!" Kikyo explained, her lower lip sticking out petulantly.  "That would never happen, would it, Miroku?"_

_"Why not, Kikyo?" he asked, turning through the pages to the passage she was speaking of.  "Have I not told you that you are sweeter and kinder than most humans?"_

_"Well, it does not make sense." She tried to speak properly.  "Who would want to see that happen?  Someone is dying, don't they understand?"_

_"Perhaps that is why I love you so well." He patted her head softly, his eyes glowing in the light from the fireplace.  "You understand those things that even adults forget and perhaps never learned.  It is a game of fools, Kikyo, but I assure you that this world is full of fools."_

_"I'm glad you're not like that, Miroku." Kikyo sighed finally._

_"Shall I continue the book for you, then?" he asked, his brow quirking slightly.  "I'll read you to sleep…"_

"Oh, now that will _never_ do, child!  Do not cry or you will become puffy and splotchy, and her Highness will send you straight back to the dungeons.  Do you _want_ to die?" the old woman was scrubbing her face furiously, and Kikyo realized belatedly that she _had_ been crying.  It must have been the idea of Miroku, her sweet brother, the person she loved most in the world.  She would never see him again, she knew that now.  And he would be so worried when he came back…she had _sworn_ not to leave the house.  He would be furious, if Miroku could truly become furious.  She rarely saw him lose his temper, and never had he yelled at her.

"N…no." she sniffled.  Not that it _mattered_ if she wanted to die or not.  It was a bit late to be asking questions like that, now that she had been caught and dragged to the Palace, surrounded in guards who would know her for what she was the moment they looked at her eyes.  Surely she would be dead in a week, probably sooner than that.  Unless they had planned to fatten her up and eat her…that was something a witch had tried to do to two lost children in another story she had read.  It had been awful of her, but they had found her out and shoved her in her own oven before escaping together.  They were a nice pair of children, and it had always been one of her favorite stories, one that Miroku had read to her at bedtime dozens of times…

"Then stop your sniffling!  If the Empress likes your looks, you'll be put in the Apartment, and then you won't have another worry in the world.  Why, it's better there than off in whatever ghetto you were in, scraping by for cash and such.  Here, we'll treat you lovely, just like royalty if you just show you deserve it." The old woman scolded as she finished with Kikyo's hair.  "Sounds nice, don't it?"

"Um…" Kikyo had never been so confused before in her life.  Weren't they going to kill her?  She was Gifted, after all.

"Just don't talk, and you'll be fine." The woman patted her cheeks twice and then rushed to the other room.  Kikyo could hear voices, and she looked down at the outfit she was wearing.  It was like the woman had been overexcited and accidentally put three dresses on her instead of just one.  She could barely move, let alone breathe.  Or talk.  Although, the fabric was still very pretty, and the white dress underneath was so soft she felt like she could melt into it.  She wondered briefly if they thought it nice to give her a pretty dress to die in.  It would be a shame to bleed on the fabric, white and cream and little bits of pink flowers everywhere.

"Finally ready, is she?" the voice was probably one of the most terrifying things Kikyo had ever heard in her short life.  It was a woman, but it was not a nice woman, from the sound of it.  She remembered a story with an evil stepmother and imagined that she must have sounded like this.  "It is past due that I take a look at the little doll-child." And then, sweeping grandly and towering over Kikyo's trembling form, a woman entered the chamber, her dress easily ten times more elaborate and fancy than the one Kikyo was wearing.  The fact that she was a grown woman was utterly obvious from the way she filled the dress, her bosom jutting out prodigiously under the cover of the lacy, frilly fabric.  And then her hair, what seemed like yards of wavy brown hair combed until it gleamed was arranged in a series of braided loops around a circlet that rested over her brow, and then three long trails of it were set free to tumble down, trailing past even the end of her overly lengthened dress.  Kikyo wondered what was the point of having dresses and hair that long if they would only get dirty all the time, but she was well enough aware that this was a woman of great importance, and that she would do best to keep her opinions on hygiene and fashion to herself.

"There she is, your Majesty." The old woman was curtsying and walking at the same time, quite a feat, and Kikyo was frankly amazed that such an old woman could pull it off without straining herself.  "Just cleaned and dressed for your viewing."

"Hmm." The scary woman closed in, and Kikyo fought the urge to run away.  She then remembered what the old woman had said and turned her eyes to the floor, careful not to meet the woman's eyes.  She did not want to get in any more trouble than she was already in.  "Girl, do you have a name?"

"Kikyo." She blurted it out without having to think about lying or staying silent.  This woman was just so completely intimidating, she had no choice but to do whatever she asked.

"The guards that found her said she's six years old." The older woman spoke while her face was nearly buried in the plush rug they were standing on.  "And already so pretty…"

"Enough, I can see what she looks like with my own two eyes, thank you." The other woman snapped, and Kikyo had to bite back a yelp of fright.  Was this the person who would be chopping her head off?  She seemed scary enough to be any of the villains in any of the stories she had read before, so she didn't doubt that cutting off little girls' heads was no problem for this monster lady.

"I apologize, your Highness." The old woman was still groveling, and Kikyo's mind suddenly clicked.

"You're the Empress?" she covered her mouth as soon as she spoke the words, terrified that she'd just signed her own death warrant.  However, the woman laughed as though Kikyo had just told the best joke in all of existence.

"No country accent, I see." She was smiling in a way that scared Kikyo witless.  "Very nice.  It is so rare that we receive quality, _educated_ companions for our men here at the Palace.  I wonder…she seems so much like my brother's type, though she is still so young.  I think I shall have him come and see.  If she does not suit his tastes, we shall just have her sent to the dungeons for being such an utter dunce as to ask _me_ whether or not I am, in fact, the Empress Kijo."

"Empress, she had no idea, I'm sure." The old woman was pleading, and Kikyo suddenly had some idea that if this Empress woman liked her, she would not die.  At least, not yet.  But then, she was still Gifted.  What would they _do_ with her?

"How would you like to serve your country, little girl?" the Empress was close to her again, looking at her face critically, "I will give you the choice.  Either you can die in the dungeons, or wear dresses like this and live for as long as you are a good girl."

"I…do not wish to die." She managed, though it was horrible to speak to the woman whose very presence was making her blood run cold with fear.  What did that mean, though?  To serve…perhaps she was to be a maid?  That was not horrible at all.  Not compared to dying, it wasn't.

"Good." Empress Kijo swept out as suddenly as she had entered, and the old woman stood, beaming at Kikyo as though they had just won some great prize.

"Oh, she liked you!  Great job, little one." The old woman did a little happy foot shuffle that Kikyo supposed was supposed to resemble a dance.  "Now then, let us get you to the Apartment, and you can meet the others housed there."  And then she took Kikyo by the hand, pulling her out of the room and leading her through the serpentine castle hallways.

Well then.  Serving the country, as a maid, that was not too bad.  Not too bad at all.

And maybe she could escape someday to see Miroku.  Surely.  In her stories, people were always escaping dungeons and castles and other such places.  It could not be as difficult as it was made out to be.  Surely not.

----------

He had escaped again.

It would take the nurses at least three hours to find him, and that was only if they had already noticed his absence.  He was not one that many people missed.  And he wanted to see his mother.  Only his father would allow that, and he was always busy these days, what with running the country and keeping the Empress from swallowing him whole, evil woman that she so obviously was.  And then of course, his half-brother was going to be sixteen in no time, and so there were an endless number of arrangements to be made.  His wife had to be chosen, and though it would probably be someone that the Empress chose herself, his father liked to try and have power over these things.

Sneezing lightly, the little boy of eight years stood from where he'd been crouched behind a column, waiting for a servant to pass without seeing him.  They would know him.  Even if there were many other children in the Palace, which there really weren't, he was the only one that was always alone.  He was the one that no one ever played with.  The one with hair as silver as his father and brother.  And almost certainly, he was the only one in the palace with puppy ears growing out of the top of his head.

Inuyasha did not mind that the other children wouldn't play with him, because usually when they _did_ want to play, he ended up in the mud, or bleeding badly, or generally ostracized and abused.  It was nicer to be alone than to be hurt so that people would look at you.  And since he never really fought back, they tired of that soon enough.  Even though it was somehow fun to attack the Prince Inuyasha because they knew that if Emperor Inutaiko found out, they would be in trouble, while if Empress Kijo found out, they would be praised.  That was why it had started, Inuyasha knew.  Because Kijo hated him so much.  He wasn't her son.  He shouldn't even be prince.  He was an abomination.  No one really wanted him to exist, and even though he knew this on some levels, he still had a hard time understanding why.

Well, that was not fair.  His father loved him.  And his mother, Keiko, she loved him as well.  She was easier to see, as she was not busy at all.  Her job was to sit around all day and keep herself pretty for when his father called for her.  That was it, and so, ever since the others in the Apartment had decided not to be friends with her anymore, he had her all to himself almost any time he wished.  Not that he was really sure they had ever been friends with her, as the fact of the matter was that his birth had been the event that had caused them to cast her out of their circle.

And none of them seemed to like him, either, even though he knew that since they were all Gifted, they really had no place to put him below them, since he was at least _half_ Youkai, and therefore ranked much higher than any of them did.  They could never have ranks, really.  Maybe that was why they hated him.  It was hard to know.

Inuyasha knew the secret corridors that led to the Apartment better than most grown men who had visited the chambers themselves on numerous occasions.  Of course, they went for pleasure of a different sort, and Inuyasha was still far too young to fully understand any of that.  He just knew that if he followed the directions that he had memorized and then tapped three times on the wall behind the big blue tapestry, he would find a secret door, and through the door, there was a secret staircase that led to a room that only the highest ranking aristocratic Youkai in all of Fukumaden had ever seen.  It's existence was a carefully guarded secret, but Inuyasha knew little about the reasons and policies and questions that would be brought into play if it was publicly known that in the Apartment, there was a populations of about forty girls and women, from his age to the age of thirty.  After they were thirty, they were usually sent away, unless someone wanted them to stay longer.  Usually no one cared for that sort of thing.  Inuyasha's own mother was only twenty-four.  Of course, Inuyasha knew she would never leave.  Inutaiko loved her.  He had told his son this secret on a dark night, when Inuyasha had cried, worried about what would come of his little family in the years that were sure to pass in good time.  And so, he ran to her as she smiled down at him, and she swept him up in her gentle arms, dropping kisses on his young head.

"You snuck away again, didn't you, Inuyasha?" her voice was gentle, soft, like music, but he knew that she was going to scold him as she always did.

"They don't know.  I'll leave before it gets too late." He assured her, and she smiled, lighting her whole face up with the expression.  Inuyasha was positive that there was no woman in the world that had ever been as beautiful as his mother, and there likely never would be one again.

"I love when you come to visit me, Inuyasha." She told him, setting him down as other beautiful woman swept around the chamber, full of self-importance.  None of them looked at Inuyasha and his mother.  None of them were as pretty as Keiko, either.  "But I wish you would not worry your maids so much.  It is enough to send them into an early grave, always chasing after you."

"I like it up here." He told her.  "Father never has time, but you play with me whenever I ask."

"Yes, well," she tapped his nose softly.  "You must always remember that your father loves you very much.  He loves you because he loves me, and because you were the gift that we were given for loving each other so very much.  Never in a hundred years would either of us stop loving you, because you are the most perfect son in all the world.  Do not let anyone tell you differently, either."

"Not even Kijo?" Inuyasha asked, and there was a sudden frown on Keiko's face.  She wasn't as lovely when she looked sad.

"Empress Kijo." She reminded him.  "You must always remember she is the Empress, Inuyasha.  And she is very powerful.  Do not anger her unnecessarily."

"I hate her, though." He grumbled.  "No wonder Sesshoumaru is so boring.  He has _her_ for a mother.  She probably hates him, too.  She hates the whole world.."

"Inuyasha," Keiko gave him a pained look.  "Promise that even though you do not care for the Empress, you will not shun your brother.  It is important to be close to your family, no matter what faults they may seem to have.  You should remember that."

"I know, mother." Inuyasha sighed deeply.  "But you're the only family I need.  You and father."

"I love you, too, sweetheart." Keiko smiled again, and it lit up the room.

She really was the most beautiful woman in the world.  Inuyasha took her hand and walked into the Apartment, letting her lead him to her own private corner as he looked around at all the others.  And that was when he saw her.

A new girl, he was sure.  She was about his age, but he wasn't sure.  She was quite small, but she was also very pretty.  She looked sad.  She looked lost.

Inuyasha wanted to talk to her.  He wanted to tell her that she would be alright.

He wanted to protect her.

But right then, he wanted to be with his mother, the person he loved most in the entire world.

*****

The End (Of Part 5, That Is)


	7. Voices Dim

A thousand other boys could never reach you, how could I have been the one?  I saw the world spin beneath you, and scatter like ice from the spoon…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 6

*****

"Come here, let me see you." A tall woman, her form willowy and frail, but her voice firm and strong, approached Kikyo.  "You're the new girl, then?  Awfully young, aren't you?"

"I'm…six." Kikyo lied again.  It was probably bad to tell these people that she had lied about her age in the first place, so she figured that the best course of action would be to maintain that one falsehood.  It was not as if they would know or find her out unless they happened to be rather close with Miroku, which she severely doubted.  Not that Miroku would not enjoy meeting all the women in this Apartment, as the secret chamber was called.  It was covered in lush silks and pillows, like a lovely lounge for the most beautiful women in the kingdom.  It was true, they were all women, some close to her age, but some old enough to be her mother.  However, they were none of them old women, and every last one was very beautiful in her own way.

"Well then, you can be our littlest sister, can't you?" the woman, who had at first seemed a bit scary because of her impressive height, smiled warmly and squeezed Kikyo's shoulder reassuringly.  "Are you scared, little sister?"

"I…am a bit confused." Kikyo admitted.  One other thing she had noted almost immediately on her arrival in the Apartment was that no matter her height or hair color or age, every single girl in this chamber had purple eyes.  Just like her.  "You are one of the Gifted, are you not?"

"Girls, come listen to her talk!" the tall woman's laugh was as strong and solid as the voice so at odds with her slender form.  "Like a princess, it's beautiful."

"Let me have a look at her, Yanagi." Another woman stepped forward from the milling masses that were simply going about their business, dressing, doing their hair, cleaning themselves, or staring at Kikyo.  The young girl assumed there weren't many new arrivals in the Apartment.  "Oh, isn't she sweet?  Like a little porcelain doll, her face is so white and clear."

"Her hair is still a bit short, but it will be able to grow out here." Yanagi added her opinion, fingering the upswept black locks that Kikyo had always thought were rather long, seeing as they went halfway down her back, while Miroku kept his own hair cropped much shorter.  Of course, he had explained to her that girls often wore their hair much longer than boys, but that had formerly been something she simply had to take his word on, seeing as she never had a chance to see many outsiders other than the refugee Gifted that they aided.  "It has a lovely sheen to it, though.  Don't you think?"

"Indeed." The other woman seemed to be about Miroku's age.  She had large, pouty lips and a heart-shaped face that was framed in painstakingly curled ringlets of hair.  "Were you only just caught, little one?"

"I…they found me a bit ago, wandering through the capital." Kikyo attempted to keep her poise.  "I was lost, you see."

"It really is a very pretty way to talk, isn't it?" the younger girl asked Yanagi, her nose scrunching slightly in amusement.  "We shall call you Hime-chan, our little princess."

"My name is Kikyo." The girl informed her helpfully, and she only laughed, patting her shoulder warmly.

"And mine is Suneru, child." She replied.  "It is a pleasure to meet you, and I hope you enjoy your time in the Apartment."  At this, both women burst into peals of laughter as though Suneru had told some great joke.

"How…long do you think I will be here?" Kikyo asked.  Yanagi's brow furrowed as though she were concerned, and she sighed lightly.

"Well, Hime-chan, I suppose that depends.  What did the Empress say?" Yanagi's eyes went round, curious at this inquisition and what the reply could be.  "Did she like you?"

"She must have liked the poppet well enough to send her here." Suneru noted.

"She did say that I was educated…something about her brother." At this, both women blanched as if all the blood had been drained from their faces.

"Her brother?  Oh, child, no." Suneru clutched at her chest as though her heart were breaking in two.  "I can only hope you mistook her.  If Empress Kijo means you for _him_, I truly pity you."

"Ah, but if she's only six, he'll just have to wait.  Seven years until he's allowed, you remember." Yanagi pointed out carefully.  "By then she might be ugly enough to escape.  Or perhaps he would lose interest, waiting that long."

"I remember, Yanagi.  I've only been old enough for two years now, if you'll recall." Suneru sighed sadly.  "But I doubt he would lose interest in something he really wanted.  Remember Namida?  She was his old favorite."

"Of course," Yanagi's face was sad, older than it had been moments ago.  "I was sad to lose a sister, but she couldn't stay here, not as dead as she was inside."

"Poor girl." Suneru put a hand to her temple. "He would scarcely let her come back to the Apartment, he was so busy with her once she came of age."

"She was sad to start out with, sadder than most of us." Yanagi bit her lip.  "It was too much grief for one child to bear."

"She died, you know, Kikyo." Suneru spoke in a low, hushed tone.  "Not three weeks ago.  Killed herself with herbs."

"She…killed herself?" Kikyo's lilac eyes were as wide as they could go.  "Why would anyone do that?"

"Namida had a sister, a twin, you see." Suneru kept her hushed tone while Yanagi nodded mournfully at each pause.  "When she was caught, her sister got sick in the dungeons, and she died before they could bring her here.  So she was always distant, always sad.  And then the Empress' brother took a liking to her.  He likes the sad ones, easier for him to break, you see.  So he waited until she came of age, but he was hounding her almost every day before then.  When she did…he took her to his chambers and never let her come back except when she was so spent she nearly had to be carried.  I thought he'd kill her like that, but she lived through it.  She started getting used to it, and she got really cold, distant even more than before.  Quiet.  And then one morning, he came for her, and when we went to wake her, she just…wouldn't move."

"Dead." Yanagi confirmed.  "Killed herself.  We found a cup of tea next to her futon, it was full of enough belladonna to kill ten men, and it was already half-empty."

"Where would she get herbs like that in here?" Kikyo asked, curious about her surroundings.  "Do you get to go outside often?"

"Outside?" Suneru laughed at that.  "Hardly.  Someone might see." She pointed sharply at her eyes, the sign of her heritage, clear on her face for anyone to see.  "No, they keep us in here, but some that know about the Apartment come by and pick a few."

"Of course, once you're thirty, they send you to the dungeons again.  Let you starve to death or die of some disease.  We wouldn't want any old women in here, now would we?" Yanagi's voice was bitter and harsh.  "You count every day, Kikyo.  It's precious, because in twenty-four years, they'll get rid of you, as well."

"Unless you find someone that will sponsor you." Suneru added.  "Like Keiko.  She'll never have to leave."

"Not as long as the Emperor's alive, that's for sure." Yanagi nodded, bending and pointing to a woman who was by herself, writing in what looked like a journal.  "That's her, the Emperor's consort herself."

"Con…sort?" Kikyo had heard that word before in stories.  She had asked Miroku about it, and though he had been rather vague, she had gathered more from the mere context in which it was used.  She was suddenly very worried about exactly what she was supposed to be doing in the Apartment.  "Why is she here with us?"

"Hime-chan, didn't you realize what you're here for?" Suneru looked sympathetic, but surprised all at once.  "We're all consorts.  Here to serve the Youkai lords that would want us."

Kikyo fainted dead on the spot.

----------

"All right then, I'll have his hide this time, and make no mistake." Moriyaku was a nice enough woman at first glance.  She seemed rather pleasant, plump, like a grandmother who was always baking cookies and hugging children indiscriminately.  But nothing changed her mood so fast as the constant misbehavior of the most troublesome ward she had ever been charged with.  Inuyasha was always running off, and he seemed to think that she would simply allow his irresponsible behavior to continue indefinitely.  Just because his brother was the crown prince and he was not, that did not mean he was completely exempt from the responsibilities and expectations that faced a Youkai prince of Fukumaden.  And she would never have it said that she had simply let him run wild and do as he pleased.  Of course not.  She did everything in her power to keep him under control, but the second her back was turned, he was gone, wandering the castle or going straight for his usual destination.

Moriyaku was one of the very few people that knew the circumstances of Inuyasha's birth, and that was only because she had been the midwife present for that moment.  Of course, all the girls in the Apartment knew about it.  How could they not?  But they hardly mattered, and they knew better than to spread such knowledge around.  If the rumor escaped and was traced back to them, they might all end up in the dungeon for the duration of their pathetic lives.  His Majesty, Inutaiko, he knew the truth.  Of course.  He was the father, how would he not know?  And Empress Kijo had found out about it, somehow.  It was an unfortunate thing for Inuyasha, as she knew better than to let word of his parentage out, but the fact that she treated him so horribly soon enough made it the rule for the aristocrats that knew who really ruled Fukumaden, the ones that were constantly doing whatever she asked.  Or her nasty brother.  He was a horrible sort of person, and Moriyaku didn't trust him at all.  She was Youkai herself, as the royal family would never settle for less than other Youkai taking care of their babies, but she liked to believe that she had some of the instincts her ancestors had possessed, and that these were what told her that his Lordship was someone who couldn't be trusted.  He reminded her of a snake dressed as a human, luring it's prey to him with a kind face and smooth voice, and then swallowing them whole.  Horrible man.  If only he spent some more time in the country, watching after his two daughters, instead of constantly staying in his Palace apartment, conveniently located just next to the Empress' own chambers.  Of course, he rarely spent any time in his room when he could just cross the hall to Kijo's sitting room and sleeping chambers.  They were always together, and Moriyaku had little doubt that he knew about Inuyasha's parentage as well.  It was disgusting, to think of a Youkai and a Gifted together like that in one body, but it was still something that did not bother her nearly as much as his Lordship's presence.

Shaking her head away from thoughts of that man, Moriyaku continued her trek through the Palace halls to the one hidden place she was sure she would find Inuyasha keeping his mother company.  Without having to think hard, she tapped three times, went up the stairs, and swept down like an angry hawk on the mice housed in the Apartment.  Why they feared her so much, Moriyaku would never know.  She had never touched any of them harshly, that was not her job.  And she had certainly done less to them than any man who had visited these chambers.  Well, of course, Inuyasha didn't count.  He was the only one who could claim to have a mother from the Apartment.  For some reason, the girls never seemed to have children, but Keiko had successfully carried and delivered a healthy looking little boy who was now prince of the nation.  It must have been satisfying for her, in some way, knowing that this country that despised her had to serve her only child without question.

"Inuyasha!" Moriyaku reflected that perhaps the girls were afraid of her because she only visited when she was mad at Inuyasha and coming to collect him, but she threw the revelation away.  It didn't really matter what they thought of her, after all.  "Inuyasha, you come here this instant!" she snapped her fingers and stomped, and after a ten second pause, during which every girl stared at her like a terrified forest creature, Keiko emerged from her little niche, carrying a very reluctant boy with her.

"Moriyaku, I apologize." She really did seem sorry, though Moriyaku didn't doubt that the woman valued Inuyasha's visits.  After all, it must be hard to never see one's own child.  Of course, she was Gifted, so her feelings hardly mattered to Moriyaku.  "I told him not to run off, but there is little I can do to make him listen.  I hope he did not cause you too much worry."

"No, he is an ornery child, that is sure." Moriyaku took the hand that Inuyasha was trying to keep out of her reach, and she pulled the boy toward her.  "I knew where he'd be, but it is good he did not have me looking too long."

"How come I'm not allowed back here?" Inuyasha grumbled, angry as always at being taken from his sanctuary.  "I'm higher ranked than a lot of the lords that come here whenever they want."

"Silly child, they come back here for the right reason." Moriyaku left the Apartment behind, still dragging Inuyasha along.  "When will you learn that the Gifted are our enemies, not our friends?"

"She's my mother, though!" Inuyasha protested, and Moriyaku stopped short, shooting him a glare vicious enough to make him tremble in fear of her.

"You had best learn to stop thinking of things that way." She ordered him.  "And you know well enough not to speak of it at all.  Just forget about useless things like that.  She is still Gifted.  She is your enemy, no matter what, remember that."

"I can't hate my mother." He mumbled after some time.

"Then forget she's your mother." Moriyaku continued pulling the boy back to his room.  Inuyasha kept his mouth shut the rest of the time.  How could she understand what it was like, after all?

They treated him like a Youkai, but they always forgot.  He was Gifted too.  And he loved his mother, no matter what they said.

----------

"Stop fidgeting, child." Kijo used her folded fan to rap her son's knuckles so hard they glowed red in comparison with his otherwise pale skin and clothing.

"I do not _fidget_, mother." His tone was annoyed, and it was clear that he was unhappy to be with the elegantly dressed Empress, sitting and pretending to enjoy drinking tea as they awaited her guests.  "And I am hardly a child."

"You are not sixteen until next month." She reminded him.  "Until then, you are a child.  Also, I will not have you taking an ill-mannered tone with me.  I am your mother, and you love me above all others.  When you are married next month, you will still see me as the center of your universe, and you would be wise to remember that."

"Yes, mother." Sesshoumaru did not like arguing with his mother.  It was troublesome and aggravating.  It was easier to let her have whatever she wanted and keep his mind diverted from her stubborn quirks and obvious inadequacies.  In this vein, he let his mind wander to his younger brother.  He had seen the child only one week ago, running down the hall to escape poor Moriyaku's care.  Sesshoumaru had smiled at the time, happy to see that the boy seemed to be getting taller and a bit stronger and more boisterous.  He had worried that living with Kijo would crush the little boy's spirit altogether.  He knew that the boy was not Kijo's son, but it was still rather petty of her to treat him so horribly.  Likely the consort responsible had been a youthful rival of hers when she had first arranged her own ascension to the throne.  It was all very silly of her, and the fact that she hated the boy so much only made Sesshoumaru sure that he must be a wonderful person to know.

Of course, Kijo would not let him come near the boy, much less treat him like the brother that he was, and so he had no choice but to watch Inuyasha grow up at a distance, waiting for Kijo to die or go away or get over her grudge so that he might finally build a relationship with the boy who he was sure could understand his life better than anyone else.  It would truly be a wonder to feel connected to someone, to feel as though he was free to love and be loved in return.  He was sure that his brother could give him something of that, some sense of family.  Real family, not like the cold and angry and Kijo or her horrible brother, or his always busy, distant father.  He wanted someone to notice him for the person he was, not the rank he held or the ties that bound him so tightly he thought he might choke and wither away under his mother's eyes.

"His Lordship and the young Mistress have just arrived." An old maid curtsied as she addressed the Empress, who nodded regally and sipped her tea.

"Send them in, by all means." She spoke, and Sesshoumaru felt an odd twist in his stomach.  He really did not care for his uncle.  The man was positively vile, and he had no desire to meet the lord's oldest daughter, either.  Especially since he had some grave suspicions about that smile on his mother's lips.  He hated that smile.

"Your Majesty." He was there, his hair held in a neat and stylish ponytail at the base of his neck, his eyes red and dark and darting, his hand reaching out for Kijo's hand as he bowed.  He kissed her fingers slowly, lingering over the polite gesture.  "My dearest sister, I have returned from the country with the girl you asked to see."

"Your Majesty." The girl standing just behind her father looked rather annoyed at the situation, and Sesshoumaru could see at once that she wanted nothing to do with the man who was her father.  Perhaps she was not all that bad, after all.  One couldn't be blamed for their parentage, he noted to himself.  "I am pleased to meet you."

"What a sweet girl she is." Kijo waved for them to sit, and they did, just across from Sesshoumaru and his mother.  "Lovely hair, and eyes like that are quite rare.  She reminds me of you, to some degree."

"She looks much more like her mother, I assure you." He smiled silkily and patted the girl's hand.  She seemed torn between ripping his arm off and running away, and Sesshoumaru felt that even though she was clearly younger than him, she was obviously smart enough.  Her eyes were red, but they were hardly the same shade as her father's.  They looked like bright drops of blood caught in the middle of her face, and they actually suited her rather well, even though the pout her mouth was stuck in did not fit Sesshoumaru's tastes at all.  She looked angry at the world.  Not that he could blame her.  If Naraku was _his_ father, he would have felt rather put upon as well.  "Kagura is a sweet enough girl.  A bit willful, but I have been sure to teach her all the ways of a true lady."

"She will be the perfect match for Sesshoumaru." Kijo's smile grew, and Sesshoumaru suddenly felt like he might vomit.  This was clearly news to Kagura as well, who was now staring at him like he might suddenly attack her and she had no idea how to defend herself. 

"Indeed, I can hardly think of a better princess for our little Prince." Naraku smiled so warmly at Kijo that one could not doubt he honestly felt affection for her.  Sesshoumaru still felt like vomiting.

"I will _not_ marry her." He spoke up finally.  Three pairs of eyes turned to him immediately.  His mother's, black as soot and angrier than he'd ever seen.  His uncle's, red and surprised and angry and somehow hungry.  And Kagura's bright red eyes, gleaming with hope and fear and uncertainty.  "She is my cousin."

"As if that is problematic." Kijo laughed as softly as if she was not ready to stab him with that fan of hers.  "There are many precedents for this.  It is difficult to find women ranked high enough to marry into royal families, and so it often happens that one must marry an aunt or a cousin of some sort."

"It's disgusting." He tried again.  "Ask her.  She clearly agrees with me on this point."

"Kagura?" Naraku turned to her and she all but burst into tears with fright of the man.  Sesshoumaru could only imagine how her life must be, having to turn to _this_ as a father.  Her mother had died some years ago, he knew, and he had to wonder how horrible it must be to have him as one's only parent.  "Do you not wish to marry Sesshoumaru?  You would be a princess."

"I…I do not…" Kagura was having quite a time with the question.

"It would please me." He added, his voice thinly veiled steel.  "Very much."

"Oh." She fell silent, and apparently that was taken as agreement, because Naraku turned back to Sesshoumaru.

"You have no choice, after all, child." Kijo told him, her tone sharp and ready to strike.  "I am your mother.  You know nothing of this world and it's workings.  You rely entirely on me, and therefore you must follow my decisions totally."

"I do not even know her." He knew he was lost, but it felt horrible to stop fighting.

"That does not concern me.  I know what is best, you need not think twice about it." Kijo told him, and he lowered his eyes, feeling that at the very least, Kagura and him could understand what it was like to hate the one person you should most love.  Perhaps they could be friends.  But he could not love someone he did not even know.  It was horrible, and he had no choice.

"Yes, mother." He agreed finally, then tuned her voice out.  He did not want to hear her anymore.

He wondered when she would die.

*****

The End (Of Part 6, That Is)


	8. Thoughts Swirl

And teeeell me that we belong together!  Dress it up with the trappings of love.  I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 7

*****

"I do not want to be here." The girl standing beside his bed looked utterly terrified when he stared at her eyes and read the emotions so clearly displayed there, but to her credit, she did not tremble a bit.  "I think you know that."

"Then we are in agreement." Sesshoumaru nodded formally to her and moved to stand next to her.  They both turned and stared at the bed.  It was just sitting there, mocking them with its size and its emptiness.  He had never found it such a worrisome thing before, but in that moment, Sesshoumaru did not want his bed to exist.  He did not want to exist.  "We have a small problem here."

"I agree." She was looking at the bed as well, her brow furrowed slightly as she obviously tried to come up with some brilliant solution.  "Well, it is rather large.  I assume your mother will check on us?"

"Naturally." He confirmed, and Kagura made a sound that was suspiciously like laughter.  She had seemed very skittish on the few occasions when they had met before the wedding, and now they were finally getting to know each other.  It was nice to know that at least she did not mind that he wanted nothing to do with her, as she could have wished the same thing in his respect.

"I would expect no less from that horrid woman." Kagura's hands flew to her mouth and her eyes went wide, but Sesshoumaru smiled at her reassuringly.  "I…spoke too soon?"

"Not at all." He told her.  "I know that you have not seen her very much, but what you see in her is the truth.  She is rotten to the very core of her black heart.  It is a horrible thing, having parents of this sort."

"How is your father?" she asked.  "I have yet to be introduced to the Emperor, honestly.  I think your mother and that man were in such a hurry to see us pushed together that they could have cared less for the formalities of the thing."

"He is a kind man, though he is too busy for even his own son." Sesshoumaru explained before pausing.  "Do…you call your father 'that man,' or were you only joking?"

"He is not my father." She assured him.  "Well, I suppose he might be, but I cannot see how I could have come from anything so foul.  Everything he touches is destroyed.  I hope that I do not destroy you, in turn, your Highness."

"Please, we have just been wed."  Sesshoumaru reminded her.  "You may call me by my given name, Sesshoumaru."

"Quite a mouthful, isn't it?" she smiled then, and it was a surprising thing to see.  He had thought her incapable of smiles or laughter.  After all, with a father like Naraku…

"And I shall call you Kagura, if it does not displease you." He continued.  "Then mother will think us well and truly wed."

"Whatever else there is to all this." She rolled her eyes in a manner that was decidedly informal.  "I think one thing is true of this union."

"What is that?" he asked.

"You keep on your side of the bed, I will keep on mine." She indicated the opposite ends of the bed before smiling brightly at him.  "And I think we shall be very good friends, indeed."

"You know, I think you are right, Kagura." Sesshoumaru could not suppress a smile.  She really was a winning creature, and perhaps he could have fallen in love with her eventually if he had wished it, but he saw the same logic that she did.  If their parents wanted it, it must be a bad thing, and therefore they would avoid it at all costs.  "The best of friends."

"Then it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." She curtsied much the way a maid would before winking at him.  "And now, if you will excuse me, I must be off to get ready for bed.  As this is _your_ bed from the start, I will let you select sides."

"Very kind of you." He smiled slightly to himself as she left for the changing room.  "Very kind indeed."

----------

"And then, a prince came to know about this princess, sleeping away in perfect beauty and youth, never changing.  He heard that the only cure for her condition would be a kiss of true love, which would wake her from her slumber.  Of course, he was curious to meet her, and soon was obsessed with the idea of this perfect woman." Kikyo recited the story as carefully as she could to her rapt, two-person audience.  Keiko was holding Inuyasha in her lap and rocking back and forth soothingly as they listened to the tale that the little girl was weaving for them.  Inuyasha had discovered her vast store of memorized books only last week, and since then she had become an additional reason to sneak to the Apartment.  "He knew, though, that he would likely fail as all the other princes had, unless he had some sort of advantage over the rest.  There was a wicked forest of brambles and thorns surrounding the palace that held the princess, and no one had ever been able to pass through it.  He was sure, though, that if he had faith in his love for her, he would reach her.  And that was when the fairies visited him.  They had heard he had a great devotion to their sleeping beauty, and they hoped for him to succeed where so many had failed, so they gave him magical protection and a great sword that could cut through anything, no matter how dark and evil it was.  Armed with these, he ran headlong into the forest of darkness, and he was able to fight his way through to his goal, the palace.  Once he had reached it, he flew to the princess' side, climbing to the highest tower and throwing open the door to see her, sleeping.  Just as beautiful as all the rumors held, and he knew at once that he loved her.  So he leaned down, and kissed her lips, ever so lightly."  Kikyo paused, enjoying the looks of anticipation on Keiko and Inuyasha's faces.  "And then…nothing seemed to happen at first.  He stared down at her face, unmoving and still seeming to sleep on.  So perhaps it was not true love, he thought.  How could that be?  All he had gone through to reach her…and she was so lovely, yet it seemed that she would sleep on for all of eternity.  But just then, her eyes fluttered open, and he knew.  He knew it was meant to be, and she smiled at him and said, 'You must be my prince.'  As she had known he would come.  And he smiled and told her of what had happened.  They were married soon after, and lived happily ever after."

"Oh," Keiko sighed lightly, her eyes closing momentarily.  "You tell the most lovely stories, Kikyo."

"How many do you know?" Inuyasha wanted to know.  "You've already told us…uh…six?"

"I think that is correct." Kikyo nodded slightly.  "I know quite a few, but I worry that soon enough, I will run through my entire store."

"Don't worry, I'll always listen to them again." Inuyasha assured her.  "You tell them so well."

"No…I just say what I remember, I think." Kikyo blushed slightly under his praise.  It was good for her to tell the stories to Keiko and Inuyasha.  They made her forget why she was here.  They made her feel almost like she was back at home with Miroku.  Surely that Rin girl would have arrived by now.  Kikyo wondered how they got along, and if Miroku was doing fine without her.  He never was much of a cook, and she worried that maybe he wasn't eating well.  Hopefully, Rin could take care of him.

"Do not downplay yourself, Kikyo, dear." Keiko smiled warmly.  "You have a lovely voice, and you show the most passion when you are telling stories."

"I know the stories." She explained, sitting down next to Keiko and Inuyasha.  "They make me feel comfortable.  At home."

"Do you miss your home, dear?" Keiko asked, all too sympathetic.  Of course she would be.  Her situation was very similar to Kikyo's.  They were both living out the rest of their lives in this hidden place, and Inuyasha was the only respite they had from the worries of their positions.

"I do." Kikyo nodded, fingering the lace trim on her sleeve.  "More than anything else, I want to see my brother one more time.  I worry that something might happen to him, but I suppose that is silly of me.  He was able to care for himself with no problems.  I was the one that was captured, obviously."

"It is perfectly normal to worry about your brother." Keiko already knew of Kikyo's past, as the girls had shared their stories with each other just before Kikyo had started storytelling for Inuyasha and her.  "You love him.  I love Inuyasha, and while I know that he has a position much more secure than I do myself, I constantly worry how he fares outside of this room, the only place I am able to see him regularly.  I do not know how he is treated, and I do not see that he is very happy.  It worries me."

"Mother…" Inuyasha grumbled, not liking when he was being coddled in front of Kikyo.  It was rather embarrassing.

"The point is," Keiko kissed his forehead lightly.  "We wish life could be easier, but it cannot change."

"So we just have to learn to live on anyway." Kikyo finished.

"Indeed." Keiko patted her head softly.  "Truly a wise girl."

---------- 

Rumors were flying through the Palace, and none of them were happy ones.

That morning, the Emperor Inutaiko had been found dead with his head consort, Keiko.  Both were in bed, and had originally appeared asleep to the eyes of the maid entering to tidy their chambers.  However, on closer inspection, there was no life to be found in either of them.

That was where the commonly known facts split into theories, each wilder than the last.

It was said that Empress Kiju had stabbed them both to death as they were lying together.

It was said that the consort Keiko had strangled the Emperor in a jealous rage and then poisoned herself to avoid being caught.

It was said that an assassin had found the two in bed, and had simply killed them both to be sure there were no witnesses.

It was said that the Princess Kagura had poisoned them both so that she could speed her accession to the throne, thinking that the woman sharing the Emperor's bed was the Empress.

It was said that the bodies were not actually the Emperor and his consort, but two dead bodies dressed to look like them, and that the true pair had run off together to escape Palace life and start over together.

It was said that a band of Gifted spies had found their way to his room and killed him with their magic, leaving no trace behind.

It was said that a poison gas had been wafted into the room as the pair slept, and that they had died peacefully without even knowing what had happened.

It was said that the Empress would be the next to be targeted.

Or perhaps the Crown Prince and his new Princess.

Or maybe it would be the Lord Naraku, brother of the Empress and father of the Princess.

Sesshoumaru had his own theories, and they were developed over a private luncheon with Kagura, who was just as suspicious at the events as he was.

"Obviously it must have been that man." She hissed, cutting her food into ridiculously small portions.  Sesshoumaru had noticed that while she ate, you could see how upset she was by how very tiny her food was cut before she ate it.  The smaller the food, the angrier she was.  At the moment, she was quite angry.  "He keeps his powers secret, but he has long practiced and trained himself, and that ability of his to create such a horribly toxic poison would be perfect for this crime."

"I agree, but I do not see what we can do about it." Sesshoumaru sipped at his drink carefully.  "I would expect that my mother and him are plotting something, and I think that we have no choice at this point but to follow along until we have the opportunity to change things."

"It is ridiculous that you will not be given full sovereignty until you are eighteen." Kagura wiped her mouth with sharp dabs.  "You are more than ready at this point.  I may only be thirteen, but even I feel ready to take on the responsibilities of your meddling mother."

"Do you even know the role of the Empress?" Sesshoumaru arched an eyebrow at her carefully.  They had only been married for two months, and she had not had very extensive training as per her future role at that point in time.

"Judging from your mother, the job consists solely of being a horrible person and ruining the lives of all those around you." Kagura said this with a perfectly straight face, and Sesshoumaru could not stop the weak smile from tweaking at his lips momentarily.  "Also, underhanded plots are a necessity.  Do you think I cannot handle those?"

"No, you may find it too taxing." He told her, his tone just as calm as hers.  "After all, you have a heart, and she has none.  It can interfere greatly with the job."

"So I had heard." She nodded carefully, sipping her tea.  Suddenly, her entire body froze.

"Is something the matter?" he asked her.

"Your brother." She set the cup down and stood up.  "We should go to him, immediately."

"Inuyasha?" Sesshoumaru was confused.  What was all this supposed to be about?

"Of course.  It was his mother and father that our parents killed.  They will never apologize, but at least we can try to be there for him at this time.  I am sure his mother must have been a wonderful woman, for the Empress to have hated her so much."  Kagura reasoned.  Sesshoumaru looked at his plate.  He had hardly touched his food, but he was barely hungry at the moment.  It was impossible to think of one's own body when he knew what horrors his mother and uncle had been up to just the night before.

"Just one thing." Sesshoumaru stood as well, pushing his chair in before a servant could enter the room and do it for him.  They had sent the servants away once their food was set down so that they might talk in private concerning that day's events.  "I think it would be best if we did not reveal our knowledge of the events surrounding this tragedy.  If we were to tell, the words could get back to my mother and that man, and then we would never be allowed to exact vengeance upon them.  We would not be allowed to reach the proper age, at all."

"That is true." She nodded curtly.  "I swear, not one word of this until you are Emperor."

"Good." He offered her his arm.  "Let us go to him, then."

*****

The End (Of Part 7, That Is)


	9. Light and Dark

If only I could call the rain to melt and wash away the pain you feel, I would!  You gave yourself to me and showed me what the truth could be, for that I say thank you!  I close my eyes and watch as my life passes by, the only thing I see is you!  For all the times you've walked the line for me and standing by my side I say thank you…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 8

*****

Inuyasha was hiding again.  As far as he was concerned, there were two people that loved him, that would always protect him.  Those two people were his mother and his father.  They were both dead.  When he heard, he could not conceive of it at first.  How could his whole world be taken away from him like that?  He had not felt any warning, any hint that this might happen.  And now, what was he to do?  He had a brother, a distant, ephemeral figure he sometimes glimpsed in passageways, beautiful and graceful and cold and distant.  He had a stepmother, the scariest woman he knew.  He had his nurse, who would only tell him not to cry and not to fret, as he was a prince.  He could think of no one…

But then…a quiet girl, a soft voice, a shaky smile, two eyes a shade of purple that almost glowed with something forbidden and wonderful and familiar all at once.  Kikyo.  She was a good girl.  A nice girl.  And her stories could make him forget this pain in his chest.  Surely…

It took very little time to find the staircase and burst into the apartment, his golden eyes glistening with tears he could not bring himself to actually let fall.  The women were staring at him as though they had never seen him before, as though they thought that when his world had collapsed, he would go down with it.  He wished he could have…it hurt so bad, being all alone.  And they were all looking at him like they wanted him to go away, to leave them.  Of course they did.  None of them knew him.  None of them cared about him.  He was just another Youkai to them, and they hated Youkai.

"Inuyasha!" the voice seemed small usually, but in the silence, it pierced him, and pulled at him, and when she ran forward, breaking through the crowd of taller Gifted, she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.  "Is…what they have said.  Is it true?"

"They're both dead." He told her, his voice shaking.  "If that's what you mean."

"Oh gods…" tears welled in those perfect, violet orbs, and Inuyasha did the first thing he thought of.  He hugged her.  At first, she froze, but as reservations and shyness melted away in the face of grief, she clung to him, her face burrowing into his chest, tears spilling onto his shirt as she let herself, for just a moment, feel like she was home, and this person holding her was Miroku, and it was _okay_ to cry, because Keiko had died.  But then, the fact that she knew Keiko ruined the illusion, and she found herself with Inuyasha.  He was much shorter than Miroku.  That was likely due to the age difference, but that was still something that bothered her at the moment.  He was taller than her, though, so perhaps she could just lean on him for a little while longer.  And surely, he would be sad as well.  Keiko was her friend, but she was his mother, and while she did not know too much about Inuyasha, she had gathered that he had very few people to turn to.  She had lived for so long with such a small base of trust and love that she could understand how he must feel.  How had _she_ felt when Kaede had died?  What if Miroku had died on that same day?  The fact that he was not crying was frankly amazing to her.  "It is okay to cry," she whispered against him.  "When someone dies, there is no shame in it."

"I'm a prince." He told her, his voice barely audible as he lowered it so that the surrounding women would not hear.  "I'm not allowed to have tears."

"That is horrible." She clung to him tighter than before, suddenly feeling very sorry for this boy who had turned to _her_ of all people, in his hour of sadness and need.  "I will cry for both of us then, shall I?"

"Thanks." He shifted away from her slightly; rubbing his face to be sure none of that moisture had actually trickled down his cheeks.  Satisfied, he took her hand in his and led her back to the corner where Keiko had once spent all her free time, reading or grooming or simply thinking of life and its many intricacies.  "Kikyo, you are my best friend now."

"I am?" Kikyo made a face at this.  How very alone he must be, that she was his best friend.  She had told him stories a few times, but surely _someone_ must show him more attention than that.  She had obviously misjudged him in her recent bitter state toward all those who could enter and leave the Apartment at will and without worry of repercussions.

"If you want to be." He suddenly seemed very unsure of himself, like he was afraid she would attack him in some way.  Kikyo puzzled over this for a moment before nodding firmly at the boy sitting next to her.

"Of course, I have no other friends.  If we are friends, and you are the only friend I have, that makes you my best friend right away, doesn't it?" she figured.

"That's right." Inuyasha smiled broadly, looking very relieved.  "I'm glad, because now that mother and father are gone, I had no one else to care about me."

"Keiko said you had a brother." Kikyo told him doubtfully.  "He must love you."

"Sesshoumaru?" Inuyasha's face twisted slightly.  "He doesn't know I exist.  I see him sometimes, walking around the Palace like he's already Emperor.  He never talks to me."

"Really?" Kikyo blinked, thinking of Miroku simply ignoring her.  It was utterly inconceivable.  Even now, he must be worrying and searching for her as hard as he could.  Surely, since he was Miroku, and he was exceedingly clever, he would find where she was and break her out.  That was why she was not very concerned about her stay here in the Apartment, and the eventual duties that such service would entail.  The Lord Naraku had seemed very interested in her, but she would be long gone before she was old enough for him to touch, so it was no problem.  However, while she _was_ here, it would be lovely to have a friend, and Inuyasha certainly seemed in dire need of one at the moment.  "I have a brother, and he loves me very much."

"What's his name?" Inuyasha seemed interested in this, blinking his eyes and leaning in slightly.

"Miroku." She answered before thinking.  Kikyo immediately covered her mouth and gasped in shock.  "Oh no…please forget I said that."

"Why?" he cocked his head to one side, obviously confused at her request.

"Of course, he is my brother, so he must be Gifted as well.  I should not have told you his name.  If someone found out, he would be arrested and thrown in the dungeons to die." Kikyo felt her heart racing at this possibility.  "He is the person I love most in the world, I could never forgive myself if it was my fault…"

"I wouldn't tell." Inuyasha seemed slightly insulted.  "We're best friends.  We can say anything to each other now."

"Oh…really?" she felt herself calming down.  "I didn't know that.  I have never had a best friend before."

"Neither have I." He told her, smiling slightly.  "We can learn together."

"I think…I would like that." Kikyo grinned, but she faltered as she heard the door to the Apartment opening.  Even though she knew that they were not coming for her, every time the door opened, she felt her stomach flip over and her throat tighten nervously.  She hoped it was not that Naraku man.  He was a very unpleasant sort, and she did not care for the way he would look at her when he came on his visits, leaving with two or three terrified looking Gifted.  Naraku had a horrible reputation with the women in the Apartment, as she had learned from her first day, a night with him was a night to be dreaded.  Of course, Miroku would come for her soon, and she would be done worrying about it.

It was not Naraku that entered, as Kikyo had feared it might be.  Inuyasha had suspected it would be Moriyaku, but he was also wrong.  It was the Princess Kagura.  Everyone stopped to look at her, vaguely puzzled.  Only Inuyasha and a few of the Gifted who had glimpsed her in the halls knew who it was for sure, but the circlet she wore communicated her rank easily enough.  Her eyes were a bright shade of red like nothing the women had ever seen, and her delicate features added to the exotic beauty she exuded.  She was easily prettier than most of the women in the room, and they were among the most beautiful of her kind.  It ground against their pride that she was the Naraku's daughter, and therefore someone to be hated as much as the man himself, and yet she was so beautiful at only thirteen years of age.

"Yes, I have spotted him." She turned toward the still open door, and the person she addressed stepped forward, eliciting gasps from the women in the room.  The Crown Prince Sesshoumaru was said to be a beautiful young man, but very few had ever had occasion to see him, and even then, the full sight of him was something awe-inspiring.  He was a man, and yet he was at least as beautiful as his wife, if not more so.  If he had not been a Youkai, and therefore someone to be hated, many of the women would have stepped forward to introduce themselves in hopes of impressing him, making some sort of impression on the gorgeous young man, or at least having him look at them full on with his lovely, slanted golden eyes framed by dark lashes and endless tresses of shimmering silver hair.  "He is just there, do you see?" Kagura pointed imperiously, and all eyes turned to see Inuyasha, looking rather shocked, and Kikyo, looking terribly frightened at having her little hideaway suddenly exposed to all eyes.

"Inuyasha." Sesshoumaru's voice was deep, a surprise to most women present, who had expected a feminine sound to emit from that gorgeous mouth.  "I believe I have yet to introduce myself to you.  I am your older brother, Sesshoumaru."

"I know who you are." Inuyasha was trying his best not to sound completely flabbergasted at this turn of events.  "What do you want?"

"I wished to express my condolences on this day of loss, and offer my sympathy at the passing of your mother in addition to our father, who shall be sorely missed." Sesshoumaru intoned, his voice and language as formal as ever.

"I too, wish to offer my condolences.  I was never very close to your father or your mother, but I am sure they were lovely people, and as Sesshoumaru has told me much about your father, I was looking forward to making his acquaintance more casually, but for now, I shall have to hope only that you will look kindly upon me."  Kagura spoke as soon as he had finished.  Inuyasha gaped at them in surprise before he heard Moriyaku's voice in his mind telling him that princes _never_ let their mouths hang open like windows on a hot day, and he promptly snapped his jaw closed.

"Okay.  Well, thank you." He cleared his throat, trying to sound a _bit_ more proper.  He felt foolish talking to these two; they were so much more sophisticated than him.  Even _Kikyo_ was better at speaking than he was, but that was mostly because he did not _like_ speaking like that when it felt unnatural and forced to him.  "I accept your offer graciously and…offer my sympathy in return."

"Also, I was hoping that in the future you might turn to me as a confidant, now that I am your closest living relation."  Sesshoumaru offered, and Inuyasha nodded mutely.  "I apologize for not speaking to you in the past, but my mother forbids it."

"Oh, yeah, her." Inuyasha flushed, feeling like an idiot again.  "I mean, that is perfectly understandable, and I hold no grudge…concerning this…er…affair."

"Nice." Kikyo sounded snide as she whispered the word, but that was something he would worry about later.

"Having said that, would you be opposed to a private breakfast tomorrow morning?  It seems that we are obligated this evening, but we would love the opportunity to spend time with you, our brother." Kagura smiled warmly at him, and he found himself smiling back.  That was true, wasn't it?  Now that they were married, he was Kagura's brother as well.  She seemed a very nice sister, though he had nothing to compare her to.

"I would like that." He answered more easily this time, and he thought that Sesshoumaru almost smiled at him in return for his own shy grin.

"Excellent.  Until tomorrow." Sesshoumaru nodded sharply and swept out of the room.  Kagura looked after him before gliding over to Inuyasha, leaning down, and kissing the top of his head.

"We are truly sorry, Inuyasha." She told him, and he felt some of the ache ebb away.  It was odd, yesterday his world had been his mother and father.  Now he had three people to care for him even though they had gone away.  Perhaps he would be all right after all.

----------

"Lovely, isn't it?" Kijo sighed as she watched the sunset over the edge of the city, the wind whipping her dark hair back from her smooth face.  Warm arms wrapped around her waist and a head rested on her own.

"Yes, it is." The low, smooth voice was one of the sounds she truly loved in the whole world.  "All the more beautiful after the new dawn which broke this very morning, dear sister."

"Ah, Naraku, you were brilliant, as usual." She leaned back, letting him support her weight more fully, covering his hands with her own.  "I thought there might be a danger of discovery, but you were able to slip in and out of his chambers as if they were your own, moving so stealthily in the dark…"

"Did you worry, Kijo?" his head moved lower, hot breath puffing against her ear.  "Could you sleep at all?"

"You know I couldn't, I was up when you returned to me." She turned, letting him hug her more tightly.  "I wondered what could be happening, if you had been spotted, if there had been a struggle, if you were hurt…the danger…you know what that does to me."

"I know." He chuckled, malicious as always.  "That is why I agreed to it, sister.  I love to see you sweat."

"You're horrible to me, brother." She nuzzled against his throat.  "Only because you know I let you get away with everything, you horrid cheat."

"You enjoy pain as much as I do, Kijo." He told her, his lips curling up in a grin that only she could love.  "I have the scars to prove it, as well."

"Hush, you are such a tease, brother dear." She giggled horribly, kissing his chin lightly.  "Now then, we had best keep our minds set.  There is a dinner to attend, as you will recall.  We are in mourning, all of us, and so we shall be forced to dress in black.  Have you anything suitable?"

"Naturally, I am always prepared for tragic days such as these." He winked at her as she danced across the room to her own store of dresses, looking at one after another.  "And you, my dear sister?  Do you need assistance preparing for the feast?"

"I think I shall be sufficiently aided by my own ladies in waiting, but your selflessness is, as always, appreciated." She winked back at him as she rang a bell to call her ladies.  "And now, off with you.  A woman must have her modesty, you know."

"Ah yes, even keeping hidden from your own brother." He caught her waist and kissed her cheek softly.  "Truly a mysterious and elegant lady, my sister is."

"Do not play, the women will be coming to help me." She swatted his hands away.  "Off with you."

"Until dinner, my sweet."

*****

The End (Of Part 8, That Is)


	10. Mumbles Audible

I haven't ever really found a place that I call home.  I never stick around quite long enough to make it…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 9

*****

"Good morning, Inuyasha." Kagura greeted him as she entered the room, causing both her husband and her brother to rise out of respect.  "I am sorry to be late this morning, but I hope I did not keep you both waiting too long."

"Not at all." Sesshoumaru nodded to her lightly as they all sat after her.  "Inuyasha only just arrived.  You were not the only one abed until nearly noon."

"What could keep you asleep so long, dear brother?" Kagura smiled as she let the servants fill her plate and teacup as usual.  They had made breakfast into a private tradition, all of them meeting to eat together each morning for nearly six months since the Emperor passed away.  Inuyasha hardly spoke at first, but he was warming up to his brother and sister-in-law to some degree.  Other than Kikyo, they were the only people that seemed to genuinely care for him.  "Were you sneaking about last night, giving poor Moriyaku a heart attack?"

"Hardly." He answered, looking distastefully at the tea that the servants poured for him every morning as though he would eventually forget he hated the taste and take a sip of it.  Ignoring it, he began to cut up his sausages as neatly as possible.  If nothing else, his time with Kikyo, Sesshoumaru, and Kagura was improving his manners incredibly.  Moriyaku had nearly burst into tears after one meal because he had not slurped his soup once.  "I was in far before bed time, but I had contraband with me." He smiled maliciously, waiting for the question he knew his bait would receive.

"Contraband?" Sesshoumaru arched a pale eyebrow as he speared a strawberry and began cutting it into an acceptably edible size.  "Of what sort?"

"Kikyo's birthday is in three days." He explained.  "She let it slip two months ago.  And so I decided to get her something."

"What did you get her?" Kagura was interested, but every mention of Kikyo bothered Sesshoumaru endlessly.  He did not approve of his brother, the prince just below him, spending so much time with a girl from the Apartment.  It was the only thing that Kagura and he had really fought about, about three months ago when it finally came out that Keiko, Inuyasha's mother, was in fact one of the Gifted.  This secret had shocked them both when Inuyasha had told them, but Kagura had minded it much less than Sesshoumaru, who seemed to find the whole business a personal insult his father was imparting from beyond the grave.  He had not said what he truly thought in front of Inuyasha, who so clearly found his mother to be the ultimate in virtue and feminine perfection, but after the boy had left, he had vented his anger at the insult to his perfect bloodlines to Kagura, who had not supported his views at all.  She had attempted sympathy for a few moments, but that had quickly faded into anger at his intractable prejudice against the women of the Apartment.  At that point, Kagura had brought Kikyo up, and the discussion had exploded into an argument, complete with shouting and a nicely thrown perfume decanter courtesy of Kagura.  The sitting room still smelled of lavender so strongly it would stick to one's clothes if they spent longer than an hour in there at a time.  The only comment this episode had elicited outside of their private room was from Kijo, who had said that it was good to see they were getting closer.

They had an understanding from then on that they would try their best not to fight about anything, no matter how strongly they felt on the matter and how deeply their opinions diverged.  Anything that garnered Kijo's approval had to be a bad thing.

"A book.  I stole it from the library in the east wing." Inuyasha smiled brightly, waiting for praise for his cleverness.  The east wing library was Kijo's private refuge, if one did not count her chambers or that of her ever-present brother, the Lord Naraku.

"That must have been a frightening mission to embark upon." Kagura awarded him with a warm smile of her own, and he nearly bounced in his seat with pleasure.  Kagura was unbelievably beautiful when she smiled, and it was one of Inuyasha's goals to see her smile as often as possible.  "Tell me, were you afraid?"

"Not a bit." Inuyasha assured her, his chest puffing out slightly.  "I was very careful to avoid being spotted."

"I am sure you would be." Kagura spoke over the rim of her teacup, eyes flashing merrily.  "What a disaster if the snake herself had seen you enter her lair."

"I took a sword with me." Inuyasha admitted, "Not a very sharp one, but I thought it would come in handy if worse came to worse."

"Very brave of you." Sesshoumaru sighed finally.  "A shame she did not find you.  I would have been deeply grateful if you had brought me a present as well."

"That is delightfully horrible of you, Sesshoumaru." Kagura's eyes turned to the pale heir who was still too young to assume the throne by three months.  "I cannot believe you would let your dear brother walk into her den armed with nothing but a dull sword and then have the audacity to be disappointed that she did not happen upon him on his mission."

"Even an Emperor can dream." He spoke, his tone philosophical.  "And I am still no more than a prince."

"Soon, you will be old enough." Kagura reminded him.  "I am sure that Kijo has something wicked planned for that happenstance.  It would be a shame if she had to hand the reigns over to you."

"If she could get them out of Naraku's fingers." Sesshoumaru murmured before setting down his fork.  "Never mind that, though.  It is far too early for us to be concerned with the baser beings in the world.  I am only glad to have my closest companions here with me."

"As am I." Kagura tilted her head ever so slightly; a graceful gesture that Inuyasha thought only made her seem more the Empress that she would one day be.  They could train her and drill her forever and never teach her anything as utterly genius as that way she sat, the way her head moved, the way her eyes caught the sunlight and magnified it into something delightful and joyous.  "It has been a delight to dine with you, Inuyasha.  An utter delight."

"The pleasure's all mine." He flushed slightly under her soft eyes and caring smile.  With these three people, his brother, his sister, and his best friend, he could truly handle the viper and her brother.  He could live through the nights when something he saw would strike a chord in his soul and there was nothing for it but to suppress his tears and try his hardest not to cry himself to sleep, missing his parents.  Missing his mother.  He had recovered only one small chest of her treasures after she had died.  It contained one dress, a royal robe that Inutaiko had given her even though she would never have occasion to wear it, three hair combs, and a small, jeweled box that contained a number of necklaces and other jeweled bangles.  When he opened the box, it played a soft, lilting melody, just as it had when his mother was alive.  It invariably made him think of her, and it invariably brought tears to his eyes, and so he kept it carefully shut and hidden from all eyes in a secret room he had found when he was six and had used since then to store all his most precious treasures.

"I worry that this will only cause you more trouble, though." Kagura considered.  "Only the other day, Kijo stormed straight in here to accost Sesshoumaru, nagging him about every detail of our meals together.  She was in a rage, if I may say."

"You may, as she was." Sesshoumaru concurred.  "It is true, and yet…I find that anything which vexes her only pleases me all the more.  And you, Inuyasha?"

"I feel the same." He nodded assertively.

"Only think of what she will say when you are Emperor and you name Inuyasha Crown Prince." Kagura sipped at her tea in utter delight at the subject of causing Kijo's plots any sort of tangles.  "A rage, I say."

"Quite correct." Sesshoumaru set down his napkin, having finished his breakfast, but not his conversation.  "That would almost be an understatement."

"You don't really mean to name _me_, do you?" Inuyasha asked, incredulous.  "She would never stand for it."

"She will not have to stand.  It is a rather long ceremony, she might sit if it pleases her." Kagura suggested, her face utterly serious.  "And it is not so very silly, Inuyasha.  Obviously, who _else_ would Sesshoumaru possibly name as heir?"

"You…when you two have a son…" Inuyasha began, hesitating halfway through his explanation and then stopping utterly when Kagura actually began laughing.  Sesshoumaru's face quirked into what could be considered something vaguely resembling a smile, and he frowned, having missed the joke.

"Oh dear, that was quite priceless, Inuyasha." Kagura pulled a fan out to wave at her face prettily before snapping it closed and letting it disappear into her sleeve from whence it had come.  "Sesshoumaru and I having a son.  That would be quite impossible, dear boy."

"But why?" he could not believe this.  And why was it funny that Sesshoumaru and Kagura were having such a potentially serious problem in their relationship and responsibility to the kingdom.

"Because, we are not in love." Kagura answered him bluntly.  "And though I must say, Sesshoumaru is my dearest friend and most trusted confidant—"

"As you are mine." He interjected smoothly.

"Why, thank you.  Yes, of course, we could never have a child if we know that the two people most determined to see the fruits of such a union are the two people we hate most in this world.  It would be horrible to be our child, do you not think?  We would begrudge the poor thing its very existence.  And so, no matter how Kijo nags and no matter what herbal infusions they leave outside our door, there will never be a child born between the two of us.  However, if Sesshoumaru were to take a consort, then there would be a possible future heir.  That is, however, very unlikely at this time, and so, we shall just go on as we have, sleeping as far apart as that dratted bed allows without becoming uncomfortable, and while we seem amiable enough, there will never be a child from us." Kagura explained carefully.

"How come you don't love each other?" Inuyasha blinked at her.  "I mean…I understand how you might not be in love with him—"

"Thank you, that is very flattering, dear brother." Sesshoumaru spoke up, his tone dry.

"But Sesshoumaru has no reason not to love you." Inuyasha continued.  "No one will ever be as beautiful as you, and besides that, you are the perfect Empress."

"I doubt that is what he is looking for, exactly." Kagura smiled brightly once more.  "Though I do appreciate the sentiment."

"And you forget, she is my cousin." Sesshoumaru reminded his brother.  "It is a distasteful affair, all of it."

"I never thought to marry a man prettier than myself." Kagura sighed dramatically.  "Such a trial."

"Please, you are hardly winning sympathy with your whimpering." Sesshoumaru stood.  "Now then, let us conclude.  I have many other obligations far less pleasing to see to before the day ends."

"As do I." Kagura agreed reluctantly.  "It was a pleasure, as always."

"Indeed." Sesshoumaru bowed slightly and exited the room, with Kagura a few steps behind him.  Inuyasha left last, thinking about their words.

What was love, after all?  And where might one find it.  He thought Kikyo might know the answer.

----------

"Oh, my dear boy," Kijo swept into the room as she always did, like a great beautiful tidal wave ready to swallow all those who saw her.  At the moment, that would only consist of Sesshoumaru, as she had just entered his private chambers.  Uninvited.  Again.  "I have been searching you out."

"Mother." He had to remember patience, always.  "I have told you repeatedly that I do not wish for you to enter my chambers unannounced.  It is unnerving to have an audience while I am trying only to get dressed.  Besides that, it is not yet midmorning.  You cannot have been looking for me for very long.  Lastly, whatever it is that you wish to say must be rather timely, as I have to meet with Kagura and Inuyasha for breakfast in a matter of minutes, and while it is appropriate at times for a lady to arrive late, I hate to keep one waiting for my own arrival."

Such a child, as though I have never seen your body before." Kijo rolled her eyes widely.  "You were my only baby, if you do not recall, and sometimes I think you do not."

"Timely, mother." Sesshoumaru prompted her from behind the dressing screen he was glad that he used religiously.

"It will not matter if they are made to wait a little while.  What are they to your own dear mother?" she asked, blinking in a manner he estimated was supposed to approximate innocence, but it fell drastically short; an unsurprising development.

"They are my wife and my brother, and as they have an equal right to my attention by those ties alone, if not by the pleasure of their company over yours, and so I shall not delay." He explained to her, his tone icy.

"So cold, Sesshoumaru.  You are my child, and yet you act as though I am a witch of some sort." She attempted a pout, and Sesshoumaru decided he preferred it when she stuck to what she knew.  This attempt at a sweet and affectionate mother was nothing short of terrifying.

"Are you not?  I had not bothered to ask." He answered, not even bothering to think over her reaction.  His alliance with Kagura had strengthened his will considerably, and he wondered sometimes if his mother regretted a decision that had obviously been meant to rein him in toward her even tighter than before.

"My only baby, and he slanders me this way." She sighed deeply as though the whole business were something she could hardly bring herself to believe.  "Come here, my dear."

"Mother—"

"Only a moment.  I just wish to hold you, as I used to." She actually made a look that _seemed_ like it could be yearning.  "Please, my baby."

"Aren't I a bit big for that?" he asked.  "Besides, I hardly remember you holding me at all."

"Now I will start." She decided that if he was not going to meet her, she would meet him, and so she crossed the barrier of the dressing screen where Sesshoumaru was still trying to fasten up the front of his shirt.  He was too surprised to say anything, so he only stared in disbelief as she reached up, hugging him tightly, and thus ruining his chances of finishing with his shirt until she let go.  "You are so very pretty, Sesshoumaru, my little flower."

"Mother, I am not a girl." He told her, his tone regaining a measure of annoyance as he realized he was actually going to _smell_ like her now.  "If you did not recall."

"I did…" her hands wandered over his chest in a manner that he considered entirely inappropriate.  "This is how a man's body should look, is it not?"

"I am a man, I suppose." Sesshoumaru pulled away and glared at her for good measure as he began again on the fastenings she'd ruined.  "It would only make sense."

"I am sure Kagura agrees." Kijo's head tilted slightly, the unspoken question in the air.  "She is not disappointed, is she?"

"I see no reason she should be."  He left her alone, she left him alone, they were the best of friends; it was perfect for both of them.

"I just worry, my dear." She sighed sadly.  "If you need help with her…I can show you how."

"Mother!" That was quite enough.  "I am quite late as it is.  I will be going, and when I return, you had best not be here, as I would be extremely annoyed."

"My own child, annoyed with me, as though he doesn't love me and need me so much." Kijo clicked her tongue slightly.  "Remember always that your mother is here for you."

"I wish I could forget."

*****

The End (Of Part 9, That Is)


	11. Warm Memories

My hopes are so high that your kiss might kill me.  So won't you kill me, so I die happy?  My heart is yours to fill or burst, to break or bury, or wear as jewelry, whichever you prefer…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 10

*****

"This is so exciting!" Rin was nearly bouncing on the balls of her feet as she walked beside her rather calm companion who was showing no sign of her pleasure except for a small twitch of lips and a light glint in his grey eyes.  "Think of how dangerous it could be…going on the Youkai side of the river…"

"Exactly why you have never been allowed to do it before, my dear Rin." Miroku attempted a stern voice, but he came off as only vaguely serious.  "We both know well enough what dangers our kind face when out in the face of this cruel world we live in."

"Oh…yes, well." Rin quieted down, the bounce leaving her step as her own artificially altered eyes turned to take in her mentor with some concern.  "I did not mean to remind you of her."

"Kikyo?" his eyes seemed to sink slightly, his frown deepening as he turned to look at the sky sadly.  "I was not thinking of my sister, Rin.  Only of your own safety."

"Oh!  But now you _are_ thinking of her, aren't you?" Rin looked to be utterly mortified. "And it really is my fault, you will be sad all day now!"

"Rin," Miroku spoke up in a calm voice, but she seemed not to hear, reaching over to clutch one of his arms with her hand.

"I am sorry, truly I am!" she spoke quickly, her soft voice pleading for forgiveness.  "And I promise I shall not say one more word about it.  When we get home, I shall make dinner all by myself.  Anything you want, Miroku!  Anything at all, if only you won't be so sad."

"Rin," he spoke up more firmly this time, and she blinked at him, ready to accept whatever punishment he thought fitting for her transgression.  "It is nothing.  Do not fret over the worries of an old man."

"You are not old, Miroku." Rin insisted immediately, a smile breaking out over young features that showed a hint of future beauty at the change of expression.  "You are only eighteen."

"And still single." He sighed heavily, as though this was a heavy burden.  "Likely I will die a bachelor, my line ending with me.  For honestly, my life is a trial I would never submit any normal woman to.  Truly, it would take a singular creature to have the bravery, the fortitude, the cleverness to stand by me through all that might occur."

"So it's best that you grope every woman within reach instead of settling down with one." Rin teased him.  She had heard this sob story before and was not impressed.

"I object to that!" Miroku actually looked offended as he led Rin across the bridge to the other, richer side of the river.  "I have never once groped you, my dear Rin."

"That's because I am too young." Rin ticked the points off on her fingers.  "You told my father you would never do anything of the sort.  And besides that, if you _tried_, you know I would simply use my spirit to throw you into the river." She pointed off the edge of the bridge they had just finished crossing into the rushing water.

"You would do nothing of the sort." He went back into a serious mode that he used while teaching or studying his stacks of books from the University.  "As I am far too practiced to let something like that happen to me, especially when you are only my pupil."

"I was only teasing." She pouted slightly and he winked at her so she would not worry that he was upset with her in reality.  At this signal, her face broke out into a wide, childish grin.  "So then, where are we going?  A Youkai manor, I suppose."

"Not today." He told her, his voice just as warm as she was accustomed to it being when he spoke to her.  "No, we are going to visit one of the few families living on this side of the river consisting entirely of humans."

"Humans?  On the rich side?" Rin frowned at him in confusion.  This was news to her, as she had only mastered the eye changing technique a few months ago, and while she had been accompanying Miroku on his calls since then, he had not taken her with him across the river until this time.  And so, she was rather unaware of how things worked in the rich sector of the capital apart from what she had heard and assumed.

"I assure you, they suffer no financial strain.  This family has a special ability that has given them the special privilege of being in high demand to those that could afford their services, and so," Miroku stopped smoothly in front of a large gate, pulling at the bell that waited there to inform the occupants that he had arrived.  "Here they are, and here they will stay unless the Youkai can relearn how to do this thing for themselves."

"What thing?" Rin asked, lowering her voice as she heard footsteps approaching from inside the gate.

"The taijiya," he told her, his tone soft and solemn all at once.  "Are assassins."  Rin looked confused for a moment before her eyes went wide and her mouth dropped into an o, being closed only when Miroku tapped her chin lightly just before the gate opened to admit them.  He watched her with amusement as she took in the woman greeting them with a look of sheer terror that showed she was obviously sure this woman would kill her at the drop of a hat.  Rin's open emotions were always amusing, but Miroku wondered if perhaps he ought to have waited until they left the taijiya manor to tell Rin the nature of the occupants.  Still, he had healed taijiya before, and while they were obviously dangerous when provoked, they seemed almost like normal humans to Miroku.  Except for the fact that they were rich, profiting from the deaths of others.  He wondered whether he should admire their ambition or not.

"I am glad to see you, Healer." The woman seemed normal, because she was.  She was not one of the taijiya at all, but their head servant.  It was rather hilarious to watch how Rin stared at a maid so warily sure the woman was actually a loose cannon of some sort.  "The young mistress is in a bad way, after she went with the master on his last mission.  I would say she was too young to go do such things, but I am in no place, after all.  I don't know about how to raise their children, I suppose."

"The young mistress, is it?" Miroku was already back in his study mode, all seriousness, but with such a gentle lilt to his voice that the maid did not feel upset at his questions.  "Would that be Miss Shinju?"

"You remember names well, Healer." The maid smiled then, although it was a nervous smile.  "Had you treated her before?"

"Yes, and I never forget a patient." Miroku sighed softly.  "Especially such a lovely one.  She had a broken arm, I believe?"

"I remember that, but this time, it is not Miss Shinju you'll be treating.  It's her younger sister." The maid stopped before a pair of doors and turned to him.  "She's quite young, about the age of your assistant."

"Rin's age?" Miroku's eyes widened as he tried to recall all the members of the taijiya family.  He had treated the father and mother various times, and also a few of the older cousins and the uncle, but he did not recall anyone younger than that in his visits.  Perhaps they had been somewhere else, escaping his notice.  "That is rather young to be working, but then, Rin is already learning to become a Healer."

"True enough." The maid sighed and shook her head slightly before turning to open the doors and leading Rin and Miroku into the hushed room that housed their patient, a little girl who truly looked to be about Rin's age, sleeping fitfully as her mother stood over her anxiously.

"Healer!" the older woman jumped up with the alacrity born of her craft, nearly dragging Miroku over to the little girl.  "You must help, she only returned from the mission a few hours ago, and she will not wake."

"Madam Bekkou," Miroku tilted his head politely toward the matriarch of this assassin clan.  "I will do what I can.  What is the problem, if I might ask?"

"She took a bad hit when they engaged the target." Bekkou told him, her face strained as her voice. "Zouge said that he was keeping an eye on her, as this was her first mission, but in the heat of battle, who is to say what might happen?"

"Indeed, it is a dangerous life for someone so young." Miroku's tone was not chastising, but Bekkou looked guilty all the same.  "Let us take a look." He pulled away the blanket that the dark-haired girl was twisting underneath, and was able to control his reaction when he saw a thick bandage around her stomach, nearly soaked through with blood.  However, Rin was still young and new to healing, and her gasp was audible to all those in the room.  Bekkou turned stunned eyes to the girl, maroon swirling in a dark panic.

"She is—"

"My apprentice and assistant, Rin." Miroku answered the unfinished question.  "She is still young, but I assure you she is rather capable.  However, she has yet to learn to not be affected by the state of a patient.  I apologize."

"As do I!" Rin interjected, immediately busying herself with opening the bag of herbs that Miroku had set down beside him to examine the young girl.  "I am still learning."

"So is she." Bekkou patted the fitful girl's arm, only to have it snake away from her as the child continued to thrash.  "Her wounds cannot close if she won't stay still, can they?"

"No, you are entirely correct, Madam Bekkou."  Miroku was already digging through his bag, pulling out a packet after some rummaging.  "I will have to make something to still the pain, as well as something which will let her sleep peacefully.  Then I can set about closing the wound and binding it with the proper herbs for healing."  Rin helped him gather the herbs he would need, and he nodded at Bekkou, indicating that she should leave.  The woman seemed hesitant to go, but the maid offered her arm, helping the woman out quickly so that Miroku and Rin could work undisturbed.  Rin was brewing the tea to calm the girl while Miroku worked on the poultice for her wounds, and soon they had both finished.  Miroku checked Rin's mixture carefully, and after an approving nod, dosed the girl so that she would let them work on her more easily.  Rin noticed that he let some of his spirit flow into her with the tea, a trick he had mastered for patients that were in more danger than most, as it helped to speed the healing process.  

Once she had stilled her struggles, Miroku removed her bandages and began to stitch the deep gash together, the whole while explaining everything he was doing to Rin and asking her questions just as if they were studying from a book instead of learning this technique on a real girl.  It was effective in calming Rin, listening to his voice and concentrating on the idea that he would not let this girl die.  Miroku hated for children to die, and even if he had to give half the spirit he had in him to keep a child alive, he would do it.  Even if it meant he would have to lean on Rin the whole way home and end up sleeping for the rest of the day trying to regain his energy.  He was in high demand because his patients almost never died, and it was a hard thing to juggle healing and studying at the University, but he did it rather well, and even had time to spend with Rin besides all that.  He had taught her how to use her spirit by the time she was nine, and when she turned ten, he began working on teaching her the mastery of the eye changing technique.  She had taken little time to work it out properly, and so there remained between them the silent question of when she might leave for Seiiki.  She had no visible Mark, and with her ability to control her eyes, Rin could leave as soon as Miroku could arrange it.  However, she had grown to see him as family over the past two years, and it seemed horrible to leave him alone in Yuurei.  At the same time, he did not want her to feel she must leave right away, and so nothing was said on the matter.  He was, after all, prone to missing the sister he still kept an eye out for, even though he feared the worst in Kikyo's case.  It was a foolish dream, to see her again, but there it was.

"Now, we need only apply the poultice and bind her wound securely." Miroku did as he said, his practiced hands working swiftly and gently to finish his job.  Rin smiled brightly when he had finished.

"She'll be fine, won't she?" she couldn't help asking, even though she knew Miroku would not allow a little girl to die.

"Yes, she will be." He smiled back at her, and took her hand, rising to leave the room the same way he had entered it.  Once they were out of the child's room, they were accosted by Madam Bekkou once more.

"Is she going to be okay?" the woman demanded.  "Is there anything I should do?  Will you be returning?"

"She will be fine, Madam Bekkou, as long as she is not disturbed.  Right now, she needs rest and nourishment so that she might heal more quickly.  I will return in two days to check on her progress, but if any of the stitches come loose, or if she complains of the pain, then you may send for me, and I will return as swiftly as possible." Miroku told her, his voice calming and soft, low lilting rhythms.  "And please, drink some chamomile tea before you go to bed tonight, as you could use the soothing."

"Yes, I will." She assured him, just as if he had given her a mission.  "I will do everything you say."

"Very good." He nodded slightly to her and turned to leave the compound with Rin.  He seemed preoccupied the whole time, his eyes moving around as though he were looking for something.  Finally, when they had left the front gate, Rin addressed him again.

"Is something wrong?  You seemed odd on the way out." She told him, her young brow furrowing in concern.  He smiled and patted her head softly.  "Like you were looking for something."

"Oh, only the lovely Miss Shinju.  It is a pity that you did not get a chance to meet her, Rin.  Truly, a beautiful and dangerous young woman." Miroku sighed fondly.  "I enjoyed treating her very much."

"I bet." Rin rolled her eyes.  Trust Miroku to go from a serious situation to thoughts of women so easily.  He was always like that, though, and so she had learned to simply ignore it.  "She was brave, though, wasn't she?"

"Who?" Miroku blinked at his companion in confusion.

"The little girl, to go out and fight, getting such a horrid wound." Rin shuddered slightly.  "Rather special, you think?"

"Singular." Miroku nodded slightly.  "Odd, I forgot her name.  Do you recall?"

"We didn't remember to ask." Rin bit her lip.  "I feel silly now, not knowing her name at all."

"We can ask next time." Miroku assured her.  "Would you like to go with me on the return visits?"

"Of course!" Rin nodded enthusiastically.  "I would like to have a chance to talk to her."

"Funny, you seemed terrified when we went in, and now you can't wait to see the taijiya again." He teased her.

"I was _not_ scared, only surprised." Rin defended.  "And who could blame me?  I had no idea that there were those type of people living here."

"They must live somewhere, you realize." Miroku sighed, his voice solemn.  "And yet, I have only one hope…"

"What's that?" Rin wanted to know.

"Next time, Miss Shinju might be there." Miroku continued, his voice as serious as before, though his eyes twinkled with laughter.  "That I might once again behold her beauty."

"Let's just go home." Rin was not about to try and stop Miroku from being the way he was.  She had long since decided that such a thing would be rather impossible.  It would take a strong woman indeed to settle down with someone as lecherous and incorrigible as the Healer Miroku.

*****

The End (Of Part 10, That Is)


	12. Twitches

Memories are just where you leave them.  Dredge the waters, till the depths give up their dead.  What did you expect to find?  Was it something you left behind…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 11

*****

"She does not need another check-up, you realize." Rin spoke softly to her mentor as he waited for the door to the taijiya manor to open.  "It's been nearly three months, and her wound is nothing but a scar now."

"It was still rather red last time I saw it." Miroku told her, clearing his throat to hide his embarrassment at being found out yet again by his clever apprentice.  "And besides that, I see how well you two get along.  I cannot bear to see your friendship end so quickly."

"And you want to ogle Shinju."  Rin added.  "Honestly, everyone knows what you are up to, Miroku."

"You may be eleven, but I am still eighteen, dear Rin.  And I would rather you remember who is the elder here." He told her, though a slight smile quirked his lips as she shook her head in clear disgust at his irrepressible behavior.  "I only show concern for Miss Shinju because she is still so emotionally upset that her sister was so badly wounded.  She worries that Sango will never be allowed to take up her weapon again, and that the rest of her days, she will be searching for a husband or a job or both.  It is hard, being an older sister."

"Something I'm sure you're quite capable of understanding, Miroku." Rin's voice sounded utterly innocent, as always, but Miroku did a double take, unfamiliar with her teasing him so expertly.  Usually she only smiled and nodded.  Obviously, she was becoming rather more intelligent than what was strictly good for _him_, as she was likely to debunk all his attempts at wooing women.

"Rin, please, be serious." He chastised her lightly as the door opened, and they were led in to see their young patient, who was happily chasing her younger brother and their cat around the courtyard.  When she spotted them, she stopped, straightening herself swiftly and marching over to meet them as though a silent voice had ordered her to do so.  Miroku supposed that was the way the taijiya were taught to behave, from the moment they could walk or talk, they were taking orders so often they came to anticipate them before they had ever left one's lips.  She did a slight curtsy to greet them, which looked odd on the girl as she was not one for skirts, and instead spent most of her time in the training clothes, pants and tight shirts, that were standard issue for the entire family.  It made her look slightly boyish, even though her face was anything but, her young body was still without the slightest hint of a curve, and it didn't seem to fit with her pretty face and shimmering black hair.

"Good day, Healer." She was all seriousness, even though it was clear she wanted to be done with the examination so she might play with Rin.  It was odd that she could be a soldier one moment and a normal child the next, but she seemed to be a happy enough child all around, so Miroku did not think over it too much.

"Good day, Miss Sango." He gave her a light bow just as Rin, smiling brightly, curtsied deeply as was proper for healers to their clients.  "How are you feeling?"

"Very well, thank you." She smiled then, obviously unable to resist Rin's own grin, and it lit up her face like nothing Miroku had ever seen.  Definitely a girl.  "Are you here to check on me again?  Or did you just want to see my sister?  She is on a mission, you know."

"Ah, while I never miss a chance to greet the lovely Miss Shinju, I am always concerned first and foremost with my patients, and that would be you, dear Miss Sango." Miroku inclined his head politely and beckoned to her.  "Could I take a look at your stomach, only for a moment?"

"Yes, of course." Sango blinked pretty burgundy eyes at him, dark lashes impossibly long as they grazed her lightly tanned skin.  "And then, might I visit with Rin?"

"Of course." He bent to look as she lifted her shirt about halfway so that he could see the thin line of puckered, pink scar tissue on her young skin.  "It is quite a mark for someone so little, is it not?"

"Is…it ugly?" Sango pulled her shirt back down hurriedly, her nose scrunching in worried distaste.  "I think it is awfully big."

"It is not ugly, Sango." Miroku assured her, patting her shoulder as he stood to his full height.  "Scars are memories that our flesh will not let us forget.  When you are an old woman, your body will still remember that first mission you took with your father, so many years ago.  Does that not sound lovely, always being able to see the past and look at it fondly, now that the pain has past?"

"That does…make it sound much better." Sango flushed lightly, smiling again.  "Are we done, then?"

"Yes, you may play with Rin." He waved the children away, and Rin wasted no time in snatching Sango's hand and running out into the courtyard where Kohaku waited with their cat, Kirara.  It was nice, seeing Rin so happy amongst friends of her own age.  It made Miroku miss Kikyo all the more, and it also made him wonder if indeed, the time had come for Rin to move on.  He wondered if he could let her go, now that she was his only friend in the whole world.  To think that Kaede had spent all those years alone without him seemed utterly inconceivable.  No family, no true friends, no one waiting when she came home.  One plate at the dinner table, no one to cook for or clean for other than yourself.  Horrible thought.

Of course, he was old enough to marry, and most of his contemporaries at the University were either engaged or already settled with someone, but as much as he joked about it in front of Rin, Miroku honestly felt that he would die a bachelor.  It was not that he did not enjoy the idea of a wife, of having just one woman who he could love more than anyone else, and who would feel the same way for him, he just worried that if he ever _did_ love someone that much, it would be horrible to saddle her with the responsibility of living with him.  For one thing, he was Gifted, and though he recalled to himself that Hanami had married without ever telling her husband the truth of her origins, he could not see himself keeping something so vital a secret, especially considering the trouble that secret had ended up causing Rin.  He understood that Hanami had likely felt the fact that she was Gifted was secondary to the person that she was beside all of that, but it was a very important thing to Miroku.  He was, after all, running a sort of Gifted halfway house, and it would be rather hard to explain that away to a wife who did not even realize _he_ was Gifted.

Added to that, since he housed so many Gifted, there was the added responsibility of taking care of these refugees, and keeping their whereabouts a secret while helping to smuggle them out of the country or at least move them to somewhere less noticeable.  It was a dangerous lifestyle to live, and that was another reason he felt like if he found a woman he honestly wished to marry, the best he could offer her was to stay away from the poor woman.  In addition, their children would be only one quarter Gifted, but there was still a chance that it would show up in their eyes, or in a Mark, and then he would be condemning his own children to a life of hiding from the very country they had been born in.

Even if all of that was not true, he was a Healer, and a University student besides that.  He had always thought that once he started at the University, he would simply give up Healing, as it would take too much time trying to do both, but he could not simply abandon those who needed him, and he found that he learned about some things at the school that could actually add to what Kaede had taught him.  Maybe, when he was too old to walk all over Yuurei, he would settle for being a professor of some sort, but for now, he was both a doctor and a scholar, and he could hardly see how he would have time to spare for a wife and a family beside all that.

And for now, he was still only a young man.  Eighteen and a half years old, with an eleven-year-old apprentice to look after.  Rin was very quick, and he thought that if she decided she would rather stay in Fukumaden, then he would be glad to hand his Healer title over to her in about ten years, once she was well-practiced.  But she would be leaving, he was sure.  For now, he could just watch her playing with Sango, two carefree children unaware that they could never really be friends outside of these lies they all hid within.

Sometimes, Miroku hated being a grown up.

----------

"This is without a doubt the best dinner I have ever had." Miroku patted his stomach and smiled warmly at the girl sitting across from him.  She was something of a young woman now, he supposed, almost marriageable age, and more than any man could hope for.  Not only could Rin cook, clean, and organize a household like she was born doing it, she was a skilled Healer and a very well learned young lady.  Of course, most men preferred ignorant women who would never question being placed in the kitchen and never being let out of their domestic servitude, but Miroku thought that everyone should be able to do whatever they liked, whether they were human or Youkai or Gifted, male or female.  And so, Rin was taught everything she ever asked to learn, and became quite a capable young woman in no time.

Actually, it had been nearly six years.  It was easy to forget that, sometimes.  Easy to place it to one side and not think on it too much while he enjoyed her company and her conversation and thought of her as a sister.  Not a replacement for the one he had lost, who of course had never actually been his to begin with, but still.  She was Rin, and she was his family, and he did not _want_ her to leave, and therefore, he never spoke up about the whole business.  Neither did she.  So they lived very happily, a Healer and his apprentice.

"You say that _every_ year, Miroku." She bit into a piece of cherry pie daintily.  "But thank you, all the same.  It seems the least I can do for you on your birthday."

"Must you remind me that I grow older with each passing day?" he sighed dramatically, as though mourning the moment. "Already twenty-one, far past my prime, like a flower that was once grand and proud, wilting under the winter winds."

"An utterly poetic flower, though I very rarely see men compare themselves to flowers even in a poetic context." She noted, grey eyes bright as ever.  "Pray, tell me professor, what sort of insinuation is being made about the poet's masculinity through this comparison?"

"Too smart for your own good, and far too much poetry for _anyone's_ good." Miroku shook his head, chuckling slightly in pride at the most gifted student he was sure he would ever have.  "And do refrain from naming me professor when I am still three months from graduating to that rank."

"Two months, three weeks, and five days." Rin noted carefully, her smile bright and just as proud as his own.  "You will be the best professor that the University has ever known, of that, I am sure."

"I am not sure I can accept the position full time, however." Miroku mused, more to himself than to Rin.  "It will be impossible to teach and remain Healer for so many families."

"Then pass them down to me, fool man." Rin made a face as though she thought it was quite impossible that someone so smart be so utterly dense.  "I have the ability to take over for you, and you know it.  You coddle me too much, and it is rather embarrassing."

"Do I?" he chuckled, but his smile faded all too soon.  "Rin, I was never planning to pass my title to you."

"What?" she smiled hesitantly, clearly thinking this was another of his jokes.  "You must be kidding."

"No, I'm not." He told her, folding his napkin carefully and setting it on his empty plate.  "I am utterly serious, Rin.  I always thought that when I went to gather you up from your home, I would spend two years teaching you all you needed to know to go back to Seiiki and find your mother's family there.  You know all of that, and more, and yet, here you are, nearly six years since we first met."

"I was not in a hurry, particularly," she told him after a long and pregnant silence.  "I did not mean to overstay my welcome, though.  I think that perhaps you should arrange for me to leave as soon as possible.  I do not belong here, after all." He looked up at that, and he thought that her eyes glittered with something more than lamp light, but before he could be sure, she had rushed to throw open the windows and turned to tell him what she saw.  "We have a pigeon.  Are you ready?"

"Who is it from?" he asked, standing and trying not to let his thoughts linger on what had just happened, instead rushing to scoop up his bag and then find his cloak.

"The taijiya residence." She told him, her voice tight, strained more than he had ever heard it.  Was it because of concern for their patient or upset over the scene that had just taken place, he could not tell.  "They request immediate assistance, Miroku.  It must be an emergency."

"Let us be off then." He sent the pigeon back with a quickly scrawled acceptance, and then they were out the door, with barely enough time for Rin to grab her cloak.  Truly, of all the families they treated, the taijiya were the most capable of caring for themselves.  Most times, when anything happened, they had already done a fair job of treating it before Rin and Miroku arrived, and usually, they only sent a notice asking for the Healer and his apprentice to come by in the morning to help with broken bones, stab wounds, sprains, or anything else they might suffer on their dangerous missions.  When they sent an immediate request, it was a sure sign that someone was in a serious state.  And so, they wasted no time, nearly running the whole way until they finally were able to catch a coach that took them the rest of the way with both Miroku and Rin fidgeting the whole way.

Once they arrived, they were immediately led in and taken to the back room where wounded taijiya were always placed.  The figure that was before them was so completely covered in blood and bandages that Rin had a hard time recognizing exactly who it might be until Miroku spoke.

"Miss Shinju," he sounded more frightened than Rin had ever heard him, but to those around, he only sounded slightly out of breath.  Of course, she had lived with him for the better part of six years, and she could recognize fear when he showed it, on the rare occasions he even seemed to experience it.  "She looks horrible.  What happened?"

"She was on a mission with Sango," Bekkou was there, tears streaming down her face in a silent torrent that did not seem to affect her voice as she spoke.  "Apparently, something went wrong, and in the end, Sango had to carry her back.  Of course, that only exacerbated the wounds…but they simply did not have enough to treat her before returning.  Please, Miroku, you have never failed us in all the time we have known you.  Tell me that you can save her."

"Let me have a closer look, Madam Bekkou." The fact that he did not immediately assure her of Shinju's well-being was enough to cause the older woman to break out into loud sobs.  Rin turned to comfort her while watching Miroku's examination in terror.  Multiple lacerations, deep wounds that were literally pouring blood, though with less speed as each moment passed.  There might have been some sprains, but it was impossible to tell under the bloody mess of her body.  Oddly enough, there was only one small cut on her face, near her right ear, and while it was bleeding liberally as all head wounds tend to, it left her face unmarred.  "Madam Bekkou." Miroku's voice was mournful as he turned to her again.

"What…is it?" she managed between sobs.

"I am sorry, but Miss Shinju is dying, and no one could possibly save her at this point.  It is simply too late, and she has lost too much blood.  Even I cannot hope to…" he left off, but Rin knew what he was saying.  Even if he pushed spirit into her until he passed out, it would not be enough.  There was no way to save Shinju.  Rin felt tears pour down her face, even though this was not the first patient she had ever watched die.  It never got easier, and when it was someone she had treated for so long…it made it that much more difficult.  "I am truly sorry.  All I can do now is make her comfortable."  Madam Bekkou might have nodded, but it was hard to tell, she was shaking so badly as she sobbed against Rin's shoulder.  Miroku began making a tea to let Shinju pass into a peaceful, painless sleep, and Rin turned when she heard the door open and shut behind them.  The maid had slipped out and returned with Kohaku, Sango, and their father, Zouge, all of them in different states of mourning.  Kohaku looked shocked, his dark eyes wide as though he could not conceive of the idea of his own sister dying before his very eyes.  Sango was sobbing inconsolably, and Zouge looked as though he was trying to distract himself by attempting to comfort the girl, who was still wearing clothes soaked in the blood of her own, dying sister.

"She will not be in pain, I can tell you." Rin finally spoke, when she felt _something_ had to be said.  Miroku had administered the tea, and the feverish twitching that Shinju had been experiencing when they arrived was fading into stillness.  "It will feel like she is drifting down a warm river, floating along without a care in the world."

"That…sounds nice." Zouge managed, but no one else seemed capable of speech, so they all watched, sobbing or simply staring, as Shinju passed from the world.

"She's gone, now." Miroku bowed lower than Rin had ever seen him bow.  "I am sorry I was unable to save her.  I am deeply, deeply sorry."  When he straightened, Rin caught the light glinting off of twin trails of wetness on his cheeks, and she could not help leaving Bekkou's side to hug him as tightly as she could.

"It's okay, Miroku." She told him, not knowing what else to say.  "It was not your fault."

"She's right." Sango's voice reached them, surprisingly controlled for someone who had just been crying so hysterically.  "It was mine."

Rin wanted to vomit.

*****

The End (Of Part 11, That Is)


	13. Images

Breathe in for luck, breathe in so deep.  This air is blessed you share with me…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 12

*****

"Father, there's a letter here." A young man with dark hair and sad brown eyes too old for his face entered a dank and oppressively dark room.  His father, an old man who looked as though he had given up on life, was laying in bed as though he had neither the ability nor the intention of moving from his spot.  His son's voice seemed not to reach him as he stared at the wall with clouded eyes.  "It's from Rin." The son added, and like magic, the fog cleared and the old man blinked, turning to face his son.

"Let's have it, then." The father tried to shit, but he was clearly too ill to even hold the letter his son offered.  After a grunted acceptance of this fact, he turned his face back toward the wall.  "You read it, then."

"Yes, father." The young man closed the door and sat in a rickety chair next to his father's bed.  At that point, he opened the letter slowly and cleared his throat before he began reading in slightly halted speech.  "Dearest brother and father, I hope you are both well.  I know it is sudden, and I hate to say it, but opportunities are so few, and so I have to face destiny and move on with my life.  The plans have been laid, the coach is booked, and next month, I shall leave to seek my fortune in Seiiki.  There I shall find my lot in life, and I can only pray that you both are able to live happily knowing that if I could, I would be living on beside you.  Perhaps if I do well, I shall be able to send for you, and all three of us can live in a great mansion in Seiiki.  Miroku tells me that mother came from a very rich family, and since I have her ring as proof of our relation, he thinks that I will surely be able to find my place amongst them.  Father, take care of yourself and try to live each day as brightly as if mother were still there, throwing open your blinds and telling you to smile once in a while.  Brother, try to stay out of trouble and if you have not already, find a nice woman who might help you in that respect.  If you are married, please write and tell me all about it.  I cannot wait to be an aunt!  Until we meet again, know that you are first in my heart and prayers.  Love, Rin."

"So that's it, then." The old man coughed weakly, seeming to lose every trace of life in his features.  "He told me he would send her there…and yet…it had been so long, I thought that maybe…"

"She shouldn't be running off to Seiiki with you lying here, unable even to do the simplest things.  Her place is here, helping me take care of you, not off gallivanting in the capital like some grand lady." The young man grumbled angrily.

"Shush, boy, you know nothing of it." Anger snaked into the old man's voice, weak though it was.  "How could you?  You're no better than I am, just a peasant, doomed to be nothing more for the rest of your life.  Not very bright, not very attractive, not very strong.  Nothing like your sister.  She received the best your mother had to give.  If only you could have been more like her…"

"Father…I…try very hard." Tears welled in the young man's eyes.  This was obviously a sore point for him, but since his father was not even glancing at him, he did not have to bother to hide his upset features.  "I want you to be proud of me, too.  I am your son.  You _should_ be proud of me."

"It isn't that you're a bad son.  You just aren't anything more than that.  Just my son, nothing special." The old man wheezed and hacked slightly.  "I'm sorry…I should have done more…something more.  It's just so late now, and I'm so tired."

"Father, don't talk like that." He really was crying now, tears streaming down his face unchecked.  "You do the best you can for me, and if I disappoint you…I'm sorry.  All I want is for you to look at me and be satisfied.  Is that so much?  What can I do to make you care for me?"

"It isn't that I don't care…son, listen." The father turned then, not seeming to see the tears streaking his son's face.  "I should tell you…before it's too late, the truth about Rin."

"That you love her best?" the son asked.  "I knew that already."

"Son…stop." The old man sighed heavily, as though the blanket covering him made breathing difficult.  "Your mother hid something from me, you know.  She thought if I knew…she thought I would have her killed, I suppose."

"What could mother have possibly done that would make you hate her?" the young man asked.  He remembered his mother very well.  When she had lived, life had been sweet afternoons in the grass, carrying his sister on his shoulders, warm hugs that didn't feel empty, eyes that looked at him with love.  He missed those days.

"She was Gifted." The voice was soft, shaky, weak, but the words filled the whole room ominously.  It was a long time before the son was able to speak in response.

"Are…you serious?" he asked.  He might not be the scholar that his sister was, but he knew what a Gifted was.  Evil creatures, oppressors who ran about killing with no thought for anything but their own pleasure.  Their _mother_ had been one of those dreaded creatures?  The joy, the cookies, the soft voice…a monster?  "You must be joking."

"I'm not.  And she passed it to Rin." The man went on.  "Remember her eyes?  Purple.  That's what color the Gifted's eyes are.  I read about it after he took her away.  Just to make sure.  It's the truth.  One of the signs used to spot them.  Purple eyes."

"But…they're monsters." He protested weakly.

"And in Seiiki, what do you think they say about Youkai?" the old man asked, not waiting for an answer.  "That's the difference between you and her.  Not the eyes, not the powers that come with it, not the fact that she studies and reads and writes so well, or that she looks like her mother.  The difference is that she can see past what she's told.  Rin sees into people's hearts and finds goodness where no one else can see it.  Maybe that's what it is to be Gifted.  Sure enough her mother was just as kind, just as sweet.  And if that's what it means, why are they monsters?  I'd follow people so pure as that without complaint.  But you…you're just like me.  Human."

"I…must be half, too.  If mother was Gifted." The son offered.

"It didn't want you.  That Gifted thing, it wanted her." The old man settled back down, staring at his wall.  "It wanted her…no surprise in that, I suppose.  Anyhow, that's why he took her, to show her a way to hide it, so she can turn her eyes grey and seem normal.  That way, she can go back to Seiiki and live with your mother's family.  Good to hear she'll get there, be happy and all.  It's what she deserves."

"Father…she's just a girl." The boy tried, his eyes pleading.  "She's only a daughter, she can't carry your name on."

"I wish she could." The father closed his eyes wearily.  "I'd die happy, knowing that."

"I'm sure." The young man finally got up and left, going back to his own room, where he sat for some time staring at the window as though looking for an answer, as though mulling over everything he'd learned that day.  After some time, he pulled out paper and ink and wrote a letter, cursing his poor penmanship as the perfect lines of Rin's own writing seemed scarred in his mind's eye like lashes from an imagined whip.

         To the great protectors of the Imperial family,

                  Lurking in Yuurei is a snake, one of the Gifted who has learned to hide her eyes with a witches' spell.  Her name is Rin, and I have enclosed her address and a sketch of her likeness.  Please, do

something to remedy this situation as soon as possible before harm falls on the innocent.

                           Signed,

                           A Loyal Subject

At the bottom, he copied down the address of that house Rin had been staying at and drew a quick sketch of her face as best he could remember it.  It had been a good number of years, but he was sure he got the details right.  After all that, he sealed it and addressed it to the capital, taking his cloak up and going to mail it at once.  Only once did he doubt his decision.  As he handed the necessary coinage to the postmaster, he saw a flitting image in his mind of himself, his mother, his father, and Rin, all of them picnicking without a care down by the old creek, laughter and love filling the air.  They were family.  She was his sister.  He was just as much Gifted as she was, after all, wasn't he?

And if their mother was Gifted, surely they weren't the creatures that he had been led to believe.

_"It didn't want you.  That Gifted thing, it wanted her.  It wanted her…no surprise in that, I suppose."_

And then, doubt fled in the burning fires of anger and vengeance that scorched his mind and consumed his reason.  He handed over the letter and went home to his dying father who could not have cared less if he returned or not, anyway.  He wasn't good enough.  He wasn't Rin, after all.

And anyway…she was leaving the country.  She would likely not even be caught by the authorities.  Post was notoriously slow this far out in the country.  She would be living lushly in Seiiki by the time the intended eyes saw his letter.  He had done nothing, really.

Just a stupid letter.

----------

"I will be out for about two hours.  My presence is requested across the river." Miroku could not help the stiff coldness that entered his voice as he addressed Rin.  She was leaving.  She was leaving tomorrow, and she obviously _wanted_ to go.  He felt betrayed, somehow, even though he had arranged the whole thing for her.  "Will you be all right here?"

"Yes, I have some more packing I need to see to." She told him, her tone sad and soft.  She did not want to leave.  But she could not impose on him further.  He was clearly annoyed with her.  The fact that she had imagined them happy together so long was clearly a sign of her own childish selfishness.  "I will see you for dinner, then."

"Yes, until then." He turned and left with a sweep of his cloak.  She sighed heavily and went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.  Packing was far too depressing for her at the moment.  She thought that maybe, if she was able to make a wonderful dinner that last night, he would see that she was sorry she had caused him so much trouble.  She had never meant to impose, but some foolish part of her had thought that maybe they could go on like that forever, like family.  Miroku understood her in a way few could.  They were both half Gifted on their mother's side, they had both felt the pain of a loved one's death.  But how could she imagine what he felt, truly?  Miroku had lost his sister and both his parents.  She had only lost her mother, and while she had not seen her brother and father for some time, never wishing to spend that much of Miroku's hard earned money on something so selfish, she still knew they were alive, and she still knew that they loved her as she loved them.  Miroku had nothing left.  Her presumption, thinking they could understand one another, had surely earned her this bitter treatment.

She did not know she was crying until she felt a tear spatter down on her hands.  Feeling foolish, she went to find a handkerchief to wipe her eyes, when she realized that she had packed all hers already.  This only made her tears grow stronger, and soon she was on her knees, arms supporting her head against her open chest as she let out great heaving sobs.  He was not her brother, or even her cousin, but Miroku was family to her, and the fact that he must hate her now stung her more deeply than she had imagined she could feel without having a loved one die altogether.

She was crying so loudly that she did not hear the door open, did not hear the movement in the hall, did not in fact realize that anything at all was amiss until she heard the door to her own room open, and she looked up, mortified to think that Miroku had come back to see her crying like a baby in her room.  That was when she realized that not only was the man in the doorway _not_ Miroku, he was not even someone she knew, but she surely recognized the insignia glinting viciously on his chest, as well as the identical badge on the man behind him.  The Heisotsu.

She felt her eyes go wide, her tears stop in shock, and her mouth fall open in surprise.  It occurred to her that she could simply act curious and confused.  Then it occurred to her that as she had no intentions of going out that day, she had not colored her eyes.  Purple.  Her eyes were purple.  She then thought that if she could only manipulate her spirit, she could knock these two men out and make a run for it.  By the time she thought of that and knocked one out cold, the other reached her, the metal rod he carried glinting in the light as he brought it down against her skull.

The world was white.  And then, the world was red and pain.  And then, gradually, and yet swiftly, the world was black.

Rin slept the entire trip to the Palace.  When they through her in the Dungeon, Miroku was just arriving home to see his front door and gate wide open.  In a numbed panic, he ran into the house, seeing a half-prepared dinner laying about the kitchen first.  Then he turned to Rin's room, calling her name out as he entered through the door that still hung wide open.  He saw her trunk, half-packed with a few of the top articles crumpled and mussed.  Then he saw blood on the floor.  He fell down, and he cried tears that he thought had all dried up after the last time this had happened, after he had lost Kikyo.

Why did everyone he loved always have to disappear?  What had he done so terribly that he was completely without happiness in this world?

Why had he left her home alone?

Why had he not simply told her that she was _family_ to him, and that he did not _want_ her to go, and that in his own way, he loved her?

He had never once said it, he realized at that moment.  Never in all the birthday dinners and late night emergency calls and broken bones they'd mended and hearts they had watched breaking or the lives they had saved or lessons they had studied and skills she had mastered under his eyes had he once told her.

She was a sister to him.  Not Kikyo, who was not really truly his sister no matter how he wished she had been.  But Rin was his sister, all the same.  And he had lost her, as well.

He was right to think that he was good for nothing, if he could not even save the few scraps of his life that were worth saving.

An hour later, a pigeon came, and he picked himself up, washed his face, threw on his cloak, picked up his bag, and went out to save someone else without another thought for himself.  What was the point in worrying for the things you loved when they were all destined to slip through your fingers like grains of sand?  Why not throw himself into Healing, into teaching, and become something useful at least to others who perhaps would have more luck and more happiness in their own lives, for they were normal.  Human and Youkai in Fukumaden were welcome.

He was Gifted, so he was not.

He was cast aside.

He was damned.

*****

The End (Of Part 12, That Is)


	14. Sounds

Ah, I'm back in action.  Actually, I haven't written a new chapter for this story in weeks, owing to the fact that I went on a mad streak like five weeks ago and wrote a bunch of chapters all at once, still rationing them out on a "one a week" basis, and then I have been taking a break since then.  But now I'm all out of extra chapters, so I actually have to work.  But I only have to do that for this fic this week, since my other two fics are way ahead of the posting schedule.

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 13

*****

"Calm down, now, little one." A beautiful woman patted Rin's shoulders as they shook with sobs.  Next to them, another occupant of the Apartment rushed over, holding up a cup of freshly brewed tea and offering it to the girl importantly.  "I know, it's hard to think about doing right now, but all of us go through it."

"Most of us." Another girl, who looked only slightly older than Rin, spoke up. "But even the halfling's princess will get her turn in a year when she finally comes of age." She pointed across the large chamber at a girl who seemed to be separated from the hubbub surrounding Rin's arrival, quietly reading from a book that covered her entire lap so completely that she looked very tiny indeed, like a porcelain doll left alone in her corner.

"There are twenty-eight women here in the Apartment now that you've arrived." The first woman began again as Rin shakily sipped at her tea.  "And you should see all of us as sisters.  We protect each other and share our woes."

"That tea has special herbs in it." The woman who had brought the beverage to Rin cut in.  "We all drink it daily.  It will keep a child from growing inside of you."

"The Youkai have done this for a long time now." The first woman took back her spot as speaker.  "They thought to shame us and break us.  It is a twisted thing, but almost right away, our older sisters began fighting back.  If you drink the tea, there will be no child.  Their idea is to control us by breeding us with Youkai.  Only one child has ever been born from us, though."

"Never again, though." The girl nodded firmly.  "She died, anyway.  Her child still visits, though.  Probably anxious for the princess' next birthday." At this, all the women broke into laughter, and Rin blinked, wiping at the last of her tears and finally speaking for the first time since she'd been told what girls in the Apartment were expected to do.

"Why do you call her princess?" she wanted to know.  They were all Gifted, so clearly this quiet girl was no princess.  At least, no Fukumadian princess, surely.

"The way she talks." The girl answered, smiling secretively, though Rin was sure that the quiet child could hear them perfectly well from where she was.  "Though she mostly reads.  She only ever talks to the halfling."

"She looks sad." Rin only half-meant to speak the words aloud, as she had not necessarily intended to post an observation.  "What's her name?"

"Kikyo." The woman frowned as though the name tasted bad in her mouth, but Rin hardly noticed.  She jumped up and darted through her confused audience until she was standing before Kikyo, who did not even look up.

"She won't talk to you.  The princess is too good for all of us.  Except for the halfling, of course." This close, although Rin did not know who had spoken, she could see Kikyo's pursed lips and hear her irritated sigh.

"Miss Kikyo?" Rin attempted, but the girl did not seem to hear, her eyes glued to her book.  "Please, my name is Rin.  Unless I am very much mistaken, I know your brother well."  Kikyo's breath caught, but Rin doubted anyone else had seen the reaction.  However, she could feel twenty-six pairs of eyes on her as she dipped into a very low curtsy, tears biting at her eyelids as she continued.  "Please, if you would speak to me, I would be most ingratiated."

Rin's nose was nearly on the floor, and while she could not see what was happening around her, the lack of sound led her to believe that all of them were watching her without movement, waiting for Kikyo's reaction.  It made Rin feel as though Kikyo really were something of a princess, and whatever they said about her, she had a strange sort of power over all of them.  It seemed a lonely thing to Rin, and she felt nothing but sympathy for this girl, no doubt the sister that Miroku had long mourned losing.  How different might these six years of isolation been if she could be near the one person who would love and care for her best, instead of being ostracized here even amongst the outcasts, with only a concubine's life to look forward to.  It was no wonder she exuded such sadness.

"Stop that." The voice was pale and beautiful as Kikyo herself, and Rin stood immediately, brushing her skirt off unnecessarily.  "There is no need to prostrate yourself before me.  We are all equally damned here, in this perfectly hidden hell."

"Cheery, isn't she?" someone spoke, but judging from the grunt that immediately followed those words, she had been silenced by a neighbor's elbow.  A silence fell over them, and Rin felt obliged to cut through the tension once more.

"I respect you, Kikyo, as the sister of my mentor, and I only wished to convey the deepness of that respect." Rin spoke as properly as she could.  "Will you not speak to me?"

"I have no brother." Kikyo finally answered, turning a page as though the book was infinitely more fascinating than whatever Rin had to say.  "But I cannot hinder you if my company is your wish.  As you can see, we are well and truly trapped together, and I could not flee you if I wanted.  I should warn you, though, that I do not suffer fools, and I will not make any effort at being amiable with you or anyone else here.  I have no need of friends."

"As you say." Rin made an additional curtsy, and this seemed to be the signal for activity to resume as normal in the Apartment, and soon enough, the women were either rushing about to find a certain dress or necklace or hair ornament, or lounging on their own personal groups of cushy pillows that covered most of the many niches cut into the sides of the large chamber.  Rin bit her lip nervously before sitting down with her legs tucked below her, just at Kikyo's side.

"I apologize." Kikyo's voice was so soft when she finally addressed Rin, that the girl thought she had only imagined it, especially since Kikyo was still staring raptly at the pages of her book.  "I know that some of the women here are less than trustworthy with information of any sort of import.  I could not risk them discovering my brother."

"No, I am sorry." Rin bowed her head slightly.  "I should not have been so foolish as to risk anyone learning of his presence in the city."

"He is still in Yuurei, then?" Kikyo glanced up then, and her eyes were the same purple that Rin had been seeing in everyone's face since she arrived at the Apartment after a night spent in a dank dungeon she had predicted to be the last place she would sleep in.  "Is he well?"

"Miroku is, of course, a success at all things he attempts." Rin had to restrain her smile so that it would not look too suspicious while she spoke with Kikyo.  "He had taken me on as his apprentice at Healing, but there were…some complications."

"What is your name, then?" Kikyo wanted to know, her face softening for the first time since Rin had met her.  The difference was remarkable.  She went from an ice princess to a delicate beauty, reminiscent of cherry blossoms on the wind.  "I am Kikyo sei'Junjou."

"I am Rin sei'Kigaru, as my mother told me some time before she died.  I did not understand what the importance of her maiden name was at the time, but I was still rather young." Rin explained.

"Then you must be the daughter of Hanami, whom my brother had set out to retrieve when I was caught." Kikyo tilted her head to one side.  "Tell me, what caused such an extended stay in Yuurei?  I was under the impression that he would teach you to turn your eyes and send you back to Seiiji in the space of a year, two at the most."

"Plans were changed." Rin admitted.  "Or forgotten.  When we arrived in Yuurei and you were gone…you cannot imagine how that damaged your brother.  He has never given up hope, you know.  He still thinks he might find you if only he keeps inquiring, looking, hoping.  He truly loves and misses you, Kikyo.  At the same time, I was learning to live without the family I had grown up with, and I turned to Miroku as a brother, of sorts.  I think we needed each other for some time, but it seems that in the end, I was only a burden.  I was to leave for Seiiji in two days when I was caught, just as I was packing my things."

"My brother must be devastated." Kikyo sighed.

"Perhaps he is glad I have left, no matter the circumstances." Rin shrugged slightly, and Kikyo let out a sharp sound, something like a laugh that had long been restrained.

"I know him, Rin.  He would blame himself for losing one of the Gifted to the authorities.  Do not think of yourself so lightly.  If he took you on as an apprentice, he must have truly cared for you, and you should never doubt that." Kikyo told the other girl, her voice utterly solemn, so that Rin found herself nodding in agreement.

"Kikyo…you are my age, are you not?" Rin wanted to know, and Kikyo coughed slightly before giving the barest of nods.

"I lied when they caught me.  So now, I am twelve.  I think it was the wisest thing I did on that terrible day." She sighed heavily.  "I still have a year before they can touch me, but you, apparently, did not know to lie, and therefore, will be inducted into something worse than even my current existence shortly.  Did you meet the Empress mother?"

"That terrible lady who looked like a spider?  Yes, I did." Rin's lip curled slightly in disgust.  "I have met many Youkai as a Healer's apprentice, but never have I met one that seemed so thoroughly…evil."

"You must not have met her brother, the Lord Naraku." Kikyo offered a humorless smile.  "He has his eye on me, you know.  He has since I arrived here."

"When you were eight?" Rin hissed it in a low tone.  "He thought you were six and still wanted you?"

"He is…not a normal sort of person." Kikyo folded her hands in her lap.  "But then, you must know much more than me about the ways of people.  You know how to turn your eyes, I assume?  And surely, you know your way around Yuurei quite well."

"Of course." Rin tilted her head.  "But it hardly does us any good in here.  I am sure your storybook offers more hope than such useless memories."

"Perhaps." Kikyo considered.  "I shall offer you an exchange.  I shall let you read my stories if you tell me all you know about the outside."

"What good will it do you?" Rin wanted to know, and Kikyo shook her head vaguely.

"None, I suppose, but it is still a way to pass the time." She reasoned.  "Also, I shall try to hide you from Naraku.  The last thing you want is for him to take an interest in you.  Since you are new, he very well might do that."

"Thank you." Rin bowed her head slightly.  "I think we shall be great friends, Kikyo."

"As do I, Rin." Kikyo offered another smile, this one friendly and honest.  She truly was a beautiful creature, but Rin found it slightly odd that she looked nothing like her brother.  That must simply be the way of their family.  After all, she had seen plenty of siblings in her time on the outside, and not all of them seemed to match.  As she considered this, Rin noticed a boy had entered the Apartment, and she felt her stomach fall as he made a beeline for where she was seated.  Already?  She had only just arrived, and she would be expected to do as they said so early?

"Kikyo," he smiled when he reached them, but it was a sad, shy sort of smile.  It matched Kikyo's well.  "Is this a new friend?"

"Yes." Kikyo patted the spot beside her, and Rin felt her heart slow back down.  Clearly, whatever he was here for, this boy was much more interested in Kikyo's attention than hers.  "Rin, this is the Prince Inuyasha, son of a former maiden of the Apartment."

"Then you must…" Rin cut herself off.  Surely, he did not like being called that name.

"Be the halfling?  They do call me that, from time to time.  Mostly in here, when they think I cannot hear them." Inuyasha shook his head ruefully, his long silvery hair shaking over his shoulders.  Rin was staring at the puppy ears on top of his head in utter fascination.  She had never met a Youkai _or_ Gifted that had such things.  "It is a pleasure to meet you, Rin."

"You as well." Rin tried to stop staring at the ears, but they were rather intriguing.  She wondered how soft they might be.

"Rin, stop staring, they are real, I assure you." Kikyo's sharp tone brought Rin back to the present.  "It is the way his body chose to express the dog Youkai in his blood when it clashed with the Gifted blood.  At least, that is our theory on the matter.  Inuyasha, Rin was the apprentice to my brother, Miroku, whom I have told you all about, as you might recall."

"And you only just arrived?" Inuyasha looked extremely sympathetic.  "It is not the best place to live, but at least you are alive."

"At least." Kikyo let out a soft noise of irritation.  "No, I am not angry with you, Inuyasha.  You do not make the laws.  If only your brother would see that—"

"You know he will not listen to a thing I say about that." Inuyasha grumbled.  "Kagura is on your side, if that makes you feel any better."

"Kagura is the Empress, Inuyasha's sister in law, as I am sure you knew well enough from your time outside." Kikyo explained.  "She is a rather pleasant person with a sharp mind, and I hope you might have a chance to meet her."

"If I stay in here long enough, Sesshoumaru or Kagura might come looking for me." Inuyasha smiled conspiratorialy, and while Rin had judged his age as somewhat older than her when they first met, she now realized that he could not possibly be her elder, and if anything, he was slightly younger.  Or perhaps he was simply male.  "Then you could meet them, Rin.  Would you like to meet the Empress and Emperor?  They are much nicer than nasty old Kijo."

"Do not trouble yourself, please." Rin shook her head slightly, but Inuyasha did not seem to hear her at all.  "I will go and bring them now.  Or, if you like, you could come with me.  You are old enough, are you not?  All I have to do is pretend I am taking you out of here for…other things."

"Do not worry, Inuyasha is a trustworthy soul.  He would never take advantage even of an Apartment maiden, as his own mother was one herself." Kikyo assured Rin, patting her hand.  "And then, if Naraku comes to see the new girl, you will be safe with my best friend."

"Your best friend?" Rin looked at Inuyasha, who beamed at her in pride at the title, and then watched as Kikyo squeezed his hand momentarily in hers.  When their eyes met, Rin saw something pass between them that she thought she might recognize.  Inuyasha would do nothing with her, as she was not the one he loved.  His affection was reserved for Kikyo.

"All right, then.  I think it would be nice to see the Palace for myself." Rin took the hand Inuyasha offered after he stood, and let herself be helped up.  "If you will not be lonely, Kikyo?"

"I have my book." She assured them, and among a great number of whispers and stares, Rin let herself be led out of the Apartment by Inuyasha.

*****

The End (Of Part 13, That Is)


	15. Ideas

Where's Kagome?  If one more person asks me that…gah!  Have a little faith, people.  I'm not some drunkard who cannot understand continuity.  You have to _wait_, okay?  Man…

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 14

*****

"Just walk slightly behind me, and don't lift your head very high.  If you act properly, no one will suspect." Inuyasha hissed instructions as he led Rin out of the secret staircase and into a corridor she had only seen just after Kijo inspected her that morning.  She wondered how many more times she would walk that corridor, and who she would be with.

"Prince Inuyasha," she ventured to speak, and though he let out a harsh noise, it was only at the title.

"You may call me Inuyasha when there is no one else about." He told her, and she nodded shortly before continuing her intended inquiry.

"Do you find me pretty?" the question was hushed, slightly terrified, and Inuyasha actually snorted in response.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he wanted to know, answering her question with one of his own.

"Nothing." She answered quickly, her small hands twisting together in front of her.  "It is just…right now, I had a hope that I would seem plain enough.  I do not think I want to be pretty, anymore."

"Wh—oh." He sighed and reached back, offering her his arm so that she might walk beside him without it seeming entirely improper.  "If I keep taking you out of the Apartment, people will think that you are my consort." He told her, his voice soft so that only she could hear, even if the corridor had not been empty.  "There are not many Youkai in Fukumaden who know of the Apartment, but all the nobles with places at court do know.  As long as you are seen with me, it will not take long for word to spread that Rin is off limits."

"Truly?" she looked up at him, her Gifted purple eyes glistening with tears she had been holding back for a while now.  "No one would betray that claim, would they?  You are, after all, the brother of the Emperor."

"Well, to tell you the truth, there are only two who might still take you, if they wished it." Inuyasha looked rather annoyed by this fact.  "Of course, Sesshoumaru has his choice of any woman at court or in the Apartment, but you need not worry about him.  He thinks Gifted are disgusting, and would never touch one, much less…claim an Apartment maiden as his own.  The other is my uncle, the Lord Naraku.  He is rather…something to worry about."

"Kikyo mentioned him.  She said she would hide me from his curiosity, as I am new." Rin bit her lip.  "Is he really as terrible as the Empress Mother?"

"Kijo?" Inuyasha's face looked as though he had just been forcibly made to eat a lemon.  "It is hard to say which of that pair is the worse, but I would recommend avoiding either.  Also, Kijo would never take you out of the Apartment, even if she wanted to, it is only men who are allowed.  I only became old enough two months ago, when I turned fourteen."

"You must be worried, though." Rin commented.  "About Kikyo."

"Yes." That was all that he said.  That was really all he needed to say.  They continued on in silence as Rin did her best to take in her surroundings while keeping her head lowered properly.  This was not too difficult, since she had been spending all her years as Miroku's apprentice doing the same thing whenever they went to work at a Youkai household.  Of course, this was much more impressive and intimidating than any Youkai household she'd ever been in, but her awe and enjoyment of the paintings, tapestries, and statues were tempered by the horridness of her situation.  Even if Inuyasha did act as her patron, Naraku could have access to her, and she did not like that idea very much after what Kikyo had said.  "Here we are.  This is the entrance to Sesshoumaru and Kagura's private chambers, including their studies and bedroom.  It is late enough in the day that they should be in here rather than in the throne room receiving supplicants."  He turned to her and smiled slightly, a little conspiratorial flash in his golden eyes.  "You know, Kagura is very kind, and will have no problem with a Gifted visiting, so we will go to her sitting room, I think.  That way, Sesshoumaru will not kick you out when he realizes what you are.  He is not mean, really.  Just not very open about such things.  Do not be afraid."

"I am not…yes I am." Rin flushed slightly, realizing that he could see her hands trembling just as well as she could.  "I will try not to act too shamefully."

"All right, let us enter, then." Inuyasha knocked on the door, and when a servant greeted him, the liveried woman immediately led him in, as they knew well enough that the Prince Inuyasha was welcome in Kagura and Sesshoumaru's private chambers at any time, without question.  The fact that he was accompanied by a severely shy looking young woman did not phase the servant as she went to tell her master and mistress that the prince was in the empress' sitting room.  "You can stop staring at your feet now.  Kagura will not mind it."

"I…am still a bit scared.  I have never met someone so powerful, and all in one day I am introduced to Fukumaden's Empress Mother, Crown Prince, Empress, and the Emperor himself.  It is a bit intimidating."

"The servants should bring us tea, and I find that when you are too afraid to speak, it is very useful to have a teacup to hide behind." Inuyasha assured her, and she actually let out a nervous giggle just as the door to the sitting room reopened to admit two of the most beautiful people Rin believed she had ever seen.  The first was a woman, with a seemingly perfect form emphasized by the perfect grace with which she moved and poised herself.  The second was a man, but he was still so beautiful that he seemed almost to shame the woman, gorgeous though her wavy black hair and brilliant crimson eyes were.  His own silver hair, gleaming like it was spun straight out of the precious metal itself, was only matched for luster by his beautiful gold eyes, a shade paler and seemingly brighter than Inuyasha's own, slightly more orange tinted eyes.  He was so utterly perfect that she found herself blushing, and began staring at her feet once more, even at Inuyasha's slight sigh of disapproval as he stood to greet them.

"Inuyasha, to what do we owe this sudden visit?" the woman, who was clearly Empress Kagura, asked him in a voice as thick and rich as honey, sinfully decadent.  "And who is your lovely young guest?"

"Kagura, Sesshoumaru, this is Rin, who arrived in the Apartment only today." He explained calmly, even though the Emperor made a face as though Inuyasha had just admitted to hiding horse dung in his blankets.  "She is an acquaintance of Kikyo's, from the outside, and I have taken it upon myself to take care of her, as she is quite new to this way of life."

"Undoubtedly so." Kagura approached Rin, who was shaking and staring at her feet, not wanting to see how hatefully the Emperor was still undoubtedly glaring at her.  It hurt to have such anger aimed at her from a creature so beautiful.  "Child, do not tremble so terribly.  You are safe here, in my sitting room.  No one may harm you whilst you are in the company of the Empress."

"Do stop the philanthropic waste, Kagura." Rin was staring at her feet, but she knew that the deep, rich baritone voice must have been issuing from the Emperor himself, which only caused her to shake even more horribly.  "Inuyasha, I do not see why you insist on mixing with the dregs of society, pests like this are not to be indulged and adopted as pets, but to be exterminated and avoided."

"Sesshoumaru!" the voice was Kagura's, though at this point, Rin was concentrating so hard on not crying that she could not really grasp much of the conversation.  "If you cannot behave like a gentleman, then you will have to leave."

"I will?" he asked, his voice carrying a slight challenge.  Inuyasha's eyes were larger than either of them had witnessed, which they might have noted if they were not too utterly ensconced in glaring at each other.  "Do not act childishly, Kagura, it does not suit you."

"Do not speak in that tone to me, I am not so very young in comparison to you." She lifted her chin sharply.  "And your own ignorance proves that wisdom is not something necessarily gained with age."

"Now is neither the time, nor the place to begin one of your petty feuds, Kagura." Sesshoumaru told her, his voice clearly tense as the air between them.

"It is _my_ feud, is it?  You are not involved at all, I suppose?  You are simply a babysitter who is watching over his delinquent charge?" her hands were balled, knuckles white, red eyes flaming.

"Honestly, Kagura, you are acting like a child.  Just because I do not wish to meet one of Inuyasha's dirty little Gifted miscreants, that is no reason to overreact." He told her, crossing his arms impatiently.

"Stop!" the voice was Rin's, and she did not realize that until everyone had froze and turned to look at her, still trembling like a leaf next to Inuyasha.  "Please…I did not mean to offend you with…my existence.  I only…I was glad to have the chance to meet all of you, Your Majesties, Your Highness." Her tone shook with tears that were flowing freely down her cheeks as she curtsied to each in turn.  "I must thank you most graciously for your hospitality, taking me into your charge and allowing me to live.  I hope…not to trouble you in the future.  Please forgive my intrusion." She turned to leave, but Inuyasha grabbed her wrist and nearly pushed her into her chair.

"Stay, you cannot walk the halls alone, anyway." He told her in a hushed tone as Kagura hissed something angry at Sesshoumaru that neither of them could hear.  "Do not mind Sesshoumaru, he has no real hatred toward you.  He is simply…misdirected at times."

"You have spoken words that would make your mother proud." Kagura finished loud enough for them to hear, and that seemingly ended the argument.  Sesshoumaru stiffened and then moved in front of Rin, coughing slightly before dipping the barest of bows.

"I apologize, Rin, for my unkind words.  I have acted most disgracefully.  Please forgive me." He sounded like he had been forced to say every word, but Rin still nodded and smiled brightly up at him.

"You are forgiven, Your Majesty.  I am not one to presume, in any case, and I am only happy to be able to meet you like this." She told him.  "I am sure that if all your subjects had a chance to speak with you privately, the tides of unrest would surely calm themselves."

"It is true that many have chosen to judge Sesshoumaru by his mother's policies, for which we are both quite mournful.  Nothing could be a grosser misrepresentation of the truth than that wicked woman's horrid mess of a government system." Kagura smiled slightly, pausing in her political diatribe when a servant entered with a tray of tea and cakes.  After she had left, Kagura blew on her cup of tea before continuing in her fluid tone.  "So many of her laws and edicts were entrenched in other policies and laws that we cannot rid the kingdom of her influence until we have had perhaps another ten years to untangle it all."

"Public opinion as far as far as the Youkai are concerned is still in high support of you both, as I am sure you know." Rin felt much more comfortable talking about the politics that Miroku and her had discussed possibly hundreds of times before, especially when she made sure to focus her gaze on her teacup, as Inuyasha had suggested.  "But amongst the humans, every day seems to bring more grievances.  They believe that nothing has gotten better since Your Majesty officially took the crown, and actually, most believe that Her Majesty Kijo is still secretly pulling the strings behind the scenes."

"I can assure you that is not so." Sesshoumaru was momentarily surprised that he was talking to this girl as though she were a noble or a very important guest.  Just because someone had taught her to read and speak did not make her any less a Gifted, he was sure.  But she held herself in a way that he could not help but admire.  Something in the way her purple eyes would flash when she felt strongly about something she said.  She had been crying before, only moments ago, it seemed.  But now, she seemed perfectly fine.  Did she really live her life with such passion?  Was it not exhausting?

Between the four of them, the talk of local opinion and political grievances lasted for quite some time, and they were all of them surprised when a servant came in to announce that the Empress Mother Kijo was coming for a private dinner with her son.  "I had forgotten it was that day of the week again.  Every Tuesday she does this, and it is rather distasteful.  I hate to excuse my self in the midst of this conversation, but my mother is not one who I like to keep waiting.  Rin," he turned to the young woman who had stood when Sesshoumaru and the others did, Kijo's arrival signaling the end of their tea.  "It was a pleasure to meet you.  I look forward to speaking with you further in the future."

"I…would like that, as well." Rin felt her mouth go dry.  She had no teacup to hide behind, and had been hit with the full power of his bright, intense gaze.

"I must agree with Sesshoumaru on this point, Rin, you were extremely engaging." Kagura smiled brightly, and Rin stepped closer to Inuyasha.  He somehow did not have such a frightening amount of beauty, and she felt a bit more natural beside him.  "We must do this again very soon."

"Yes, I will be sure to bring her by again.  Thank you for meeting with us." Inuyasha gave Kagura a light hug, and shook Sesshoumaru's hand before offering Rin his arm so that they might leave.  Soon, they were back out in the maze-like corridors of the castle.  Rin tried to pay better attention to her surroundings this time, so that she might not feel so utterly disoriented next time.

_Will there be a next time?_ She wondered.  Her mind's eye focused on a pair of bright gold eyes.  _I hope so._

"Look who it is!" a voice that was full of teasing caused their progress to stop suddenly, and Rin saw that Inuyasha's every muscle had tensed.  He turned, as did she out of curiosity to face a boy who must have been about their age with the typical Youkai features.  He had an exotic sort of allure, with his impossibly bright blue eyes shining out of a tanned complexion that melted into well kempt black hair about as long as Inuyasha's own silver locks, pulled back just as his was in a nobleman's loose ponytail.  "Does the Prince Inuyasha have a girl on his arm, or are my eyes deceiving me?" the boy strode up with a swagger that betrayed unbelievable amounts of self-assured confidence.

"Kouga, what do you want?" Inuyasha's voice was flat, grating, annoyed.  Bordering on angry.  Rin felt like she was in the middle of a feud she knew nothing about.  "I am in a hurry."

"But Inuyasha, your rooms are _that_ way." Kouga caught better sight of Rin's face and his mouth lit up in a grin that made him even more devastatingly handsome than before.  "Oh, I _see_, this is an Apartment girl, isn't it?  I should have known.  No self respecting woman with a choice would have anything to do with you and your puppy ears."

"Kouga, shut up." Inuyasha's speech was suddenly a lot less formal than Rin had heard it since she met him.  "I don't have time for your shit.  And you're really no one to talk about no one wanting them.  Still not married, are you, Kouga?  I know you've been after that new Maiden of the Empress.  What's her name?" All was silence for a moment before Rin heard the unmistakable clip of women's shoes approaching them at a reasonable speed.  She turned to see who might be coming just as Inuyasha let go of her arm so that he could get closer to his enemy.

"It hardly matters to you, because you couldn't get within twenty yards of a Maiden before she ran for the hills lest your gaze sully her reputation forever.  No one wants a freak baby with a freak puppy." Kouga taunted, and Inuyasha let out a noise that sounded remarkably like a growl.  

"That was completely uncalled for." The voice was immediately recognizable to at least one of the young men, as Inuyasha's face went utterly pale for a moment before he turned to face Kagura almost sheepishly.  Kouga spotted her and went down on one knee automatically.

"Your Majesty." He spoke just as automatically as he had lowered himself.  Kagura rolled her eyes, an expression that surprised Rin so much she nearly burst out in laughter.

"Get up, Kouga ka'Ookami.  Yes, I know your name.  I am not a negligent Empress who ignores her subjects utterly." She explained as he looked up in surprise at her recital of his full name.  "Inuyasha, I was coming to give you this.  I think your lady Rin dropped it in my apartment, but it seems to be yours." She produced a neatly folded handkerchief that Inuyasha had indeed let Rin dry her eyes with earlier, and Inuyasha took it with a slight bow and mumbled words of gratitude.  "Now then, Kouga ka'Ookami, what might you be meaning, harassing my dearest brother in the midst of the corridors of his own castle?  The last I checked, it was the ka'Inu family that claimed the top rank in Fukumaden, not the wolves."

"It was…nothing, your Majesty.  It was but a game between two young boys, and I am embarrassed that you witnessed us at it." Kouga bowed very low indeed, and Kagura made a noise of irritation.

"Please, my Lady, it was nothing more than that which he says." Inuyasha spoke up to Kagura's obvious surprise.  Rin was shocked as well.  Why was he defending this boy who he so clearly despised?  Kagura blinked several times before touching Kouga's still lowered head lightly, signally for him to stand.

"Inuyasha, thank you, please return Rin to her Apartment." Kagura dismissed them, and then turned to Kouga, who was now standing to his full height, and while he was clearly just a bit taller than her and still growing, she managed to make him feel very small indeed.  "Kouga ka'Ookami, I do not know what it is that you were playing at, but I can see the difference between game and cruelty.  I know that Inuyasha is not well loved, but he is still your prince, and he still deserves your respect, whether or not you would show it to him.  For your transgression, it would be fitting to see you deported from the Palace, if not from Yuurei itself.  I could also have the rest of your family exiled.  Many families would be very willing to take yours at court, and your family is not so powerful as you clearly think.  Your support is not necessary, especially not if your lands are taken and redistributed."

"Please, your Majesty, please do not punish my family for my own foolish recklessness." Kouga was clearly shaking with fear as he lowered himself and kissed the hem of Kagura's dress.  "Please, I will never do it again, if that is what you wish.  I will do anything, if only you will forgive a foolish boy his thoughtless error."  Kagura looked down at him speculatively, and after a moment, offered him her hand, which he kissed repeatedly to show his utter fealty.  Kagura sighed sharply and snapped her fingers.

"Enough of that.  Up now, boy." She pulled back a bit and took in his appearance carefully.  "I will not exile you or your family.  It would be foolish of me to hold them responsible for a child's error.  However, I believe that you are now indebted to me, dear Kouga ka'Ookami.  You and I shall have a little chat tomorrow afternoon at four o'clock.  You will not be late, and you will be alone when you come to my chambers.  I do not feel like a large audience is needed to witness your personal failings, dear boy.  Now then, off with you, and think of what I will do if I ever hear of this sort of behavior from you again."

"Yes, your Majesty." And he was gone.

*****

The End (Of Part 14, That Is)


	16. Shapes

She was in that chapter, by the way.  If you caught her.  She was only mentioned, but she was there.

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 15

*****

Kagura found her life to be rather routine and slightly boring, aside from the fact that she was, technically, the most powerful woman in all of Fukumaden.  With the possible exception of the Empress Mother Kijo, who lost out only because Sesshoumaru was so set and determined not to hear her ideas out because they were, in fact, Kijo's ideas, and that did not sit well with him at all.  She was growing restless, of course, quite displeased with the way Sesshoumaru was ruling _her_ country, but as far as Kagura was concerned, anyone who shared such a questionable relationship with her nasty older brother had no room to voice their opinions on national policy.

It was Wednesday, which meant that after breakfast with Sesshoumaru, when he would tell her all about Kijo's thinly veiled incestual insinuations about helping Kagura and Sesshoumaru conceive, along with her even less subtle jabs about his lack of ability to govern the country correctly, she would accompany her husband to the throne room, where they would spend about four hours listening to pleads and complaints from locals, who were all, of course, Youkai, since humans were still disallowed from voicing their opinions in court thanks to Kijo's former policy making.  They had not had the chance to disallow that one, quite yet.  After that, there would be a "break" for lunch, an hour of listening to the accountant's report as well as poring over any intelligence that the chief guard was able to bring in.  Then they would listen to the head servant's complaints about what they were out of and how much they would need, and why couldn't the accountant just approve these costs?  Then it was back to the throne room for more complaints, for about three more hours before they were released to go back to their private chambers.  If they had conceived an heir yet, they would surely be expected to spend much more time in that dreaded throne room, but as it was, the nation cared more that they have "private time" than that they hear out everyone's voice in one day.

Not that they would be getting an heir any time soon, if Kagura or Sesshoumaru had anything to say about it.  And of course, they had _everything_ to say about it.  They were the best of friends, but nothing more than that.  Kagura knew well enough that Sesshoumaru was a very beautiful man, but she personally found him a bit _too_ feminine in appearance, besides the fact that he was her _cousin_, and the idea of it was altogether appalling to her, no matter how many nobles were turning a blind eye to the situation.  Actually, more than a few had made private advances toward Kagura, since as long as she was pregnant with _someone's_ child, everyone would just accept that it was the Emperor's.  There were many rumors going about the court that Inuyasha had actually brought to their attention about the whole thing, and each was more amusing than the last.  Some said that Sesshoumaru did not enjoy women's company, and some had even suggested that, in truth, he was a woman, a fact that Kijo had covered up so that it was her child on the throne, and not that of Inutaiko's dead consort.  Another common opinion was that he actually slept with so many other women that he had nothing left for his Empress, or that _she_ was sleeping with many others, thus keeping them out of each other's beds.  Kagura had found it extremely entertaining when she had heard the rumor that _she_ preferred women herself, which was why her sleeping around had yet to result in a pregnancy.

After a few hours of "private time," Sesshoumaru and Kagura would go to dine in the Great Hall, since it was not Tuesday, when poor Sesshoumaru was forced to dine with his mother, nor Monday, when Kagura was forced to eat with her father.  There was no ball or special event this day, but that did not mean there would be a small crowd at dinner.  As usual, about half of the nobles living in the castle (those that were not otherwise engaged with each other) would come down to the enormous hall, where they would all eat together.  Sesshoumaru especially despised this part of the day, as it would always end in dancing and drinking, and he was almost _always_ obliged to one ogling fan or another of his.  It was that, or be left to dance with his mother, something that he described as being almost as pleasurable as having a bath in week old rancid vomit, since Kagura was almost always monopolized during the entirety of the time when the nobles decided she had finished eating until about nine o'clock, when on regular dinner nights she could acceptably claim fatigue, reclaim Sesshoumaru, and go upstairs.  They would then stay up for a few hours, unless it had been a night of special magnificence, in which case they would not likely be allowed to leave before midnight, and then sleep in their separate beds, much to the eavesdropping Kijo's continual dismay.

Overall, it was a dreary life, made bearable only by Sesshoumaru's friendship, Inuyasha's visits, and the vaguely satisfying thought that her father was very disappointed in her for not copulating with her cousin.  But it was Kagura's life, such as it was, and she found pleasure where she could.  She had taken well to the life of the Empress, the demands and the intrigues and the subtleties of political maneuvering and reversing all the damage Kijo had done in her seemingly brief stay in the top spot.  Kagura had yet to convince Sesshoumaru that one of the pieces on their political agenda was the abolishment of the Apartment and the fair treatment of Gifted individuals, but she had hopes that yesterday, Rin had helped move that case forward considerably.

"She says that if we have yet to present her with some good news by my next birthday, she will be most displeased." Sesshoumaru spoke as they both ate their breakfasts with an efficiency born of necessity.  It was all they would get to eat until a not-too relaxing luncheon over the tax books.

"That would be quite a change from the ordinary." Kagura offered, spooning a bit of sweetened plum sauce over her porridge.  She liked a relatively plain breakfast, nothing that might upset her stomach for the rest of the day.  "Did she also say she would start listening at our door every night, as though she does not do so already?"

"Kagura, she told me that having my brother here is clearly a distraction I cannot afford, and that if I do not take my role more seriously where you are concerned, she will have him shipped out to the country for his education." Sesshoumaru told her, his tone utterly sober.  "To your father's estate."

Kagura choked slightly, but caught herself with practice from years of having to eat through her father's disgusting commentary and conversation pieces.  "She would do no such thing.  She has no right."

"She does, and you know it.  As Empress Mother, she is ultimately in charge of Inuyasha, as his father and mother are both deceased, and until he is eighteen, she can treat him as her own child.  Even we cannot interfere." Sesshoumaru reminded her.  "It is a loophole that only she would utilize, but you know she would not hesitate to send him away."

"Can you not simply take a consort?" Kagura asked finally, unable to believe this was happening.  "You would have no shortage of willing females, as I am sure you are well aware.  You would have no need of utilizing the Apartment, of course."

"Actually, if the mother is anyone but a member of the Apartment, she will take a role more powerful than your own as new Empress Mother over you when we retire, or when I die." Sesshoumaru pointed out.  "I cannot be sure if there is any Youkai woman I trust the way I trust you to not abuse that power, Kagura."

"I am sorry, Sesshoumaru, but I am _not_ going to bear your child." Kagura shot in immediately.  "I just…will not.  We would never get through the act, I think, even once.  I would start laughing halfway through.  No offense, of course."

"None taken." Sesshoumaru shrugged, wiping his mouth to signal the end of his breakfast.  "No, my suggestion is that you find someone you can trust.  A young Youkai lord…no one too ambitious, though.  We do not need anyone to make presumptions as to their position in court.  If you are pregnant, everyone will assume that it is my child, whether they know the truth or not does not matter; they will _want_ it to be mine.  We are all so driven by traditions we have been fed since the womb that everyone will go along with what they want to believe.  What they need to believe.  Do you know of anyone you could utilize thus?"

"You make it so utterly romantic, you know." Kagura rolled her eyes.  "Someone I can utilize.  Truly, Sesshoumaru, it would have to be someone no older than us.  No older than me, actually.  Someone easily suggestible, and yet utterly under my thumb…someone who fears me enough that I know entirely he would never turn his allegiance to Kijo and Naraku.  Their influence could cause things to go rather poorly, indeed.  How could I possibly find someone who would be easily accessible, and so utterly…"

"Kagura?  You drifted off just then." Sesshoumaru told her as she stood when he offered his hand to lead her to the throne room.  "Do you feel well?"

"You know, I think I feel a bit devious." She told him, a smile forming on her lips.  "You are clearly a poor influence on me, Sesshoumaru."

"You have thought of someone, then?" Sesshoumaru asked her, and she nodded while walking alongside him.

"It will take some time, but the boy will listen to me, most definitely." Kagura smiled softly, her thoughts drifting to a pair of electric blue eyes.

_Of course, it does not hurt a bit that he is far too attractive for his own good._

----------

Kouga shook slightly as he knocked on the door to the chambers he had henceforth only vaguely imagined being invited to.  Of course, no one hoped to be brought to the Imperial Quarters under the pretense that he had been summoned, and so he was not quite as pleased with himself as he otherwise might have been.  Eldest son of a wealthy family, he had been living in his own quarters at the Palace since he turned fourteen nearly a year ago.  He had been enjoying himself immensely until today, or more accurately, until last night when the Empress Kagura had clearly expressed her displeasure at discovering one of his erstwhile favorite pastimes, aggravating the enormously unpopular and friendless Prince Inuyasha.  He had never realized what high regard the Empress held him in, as everyone knew well enough that the Empress Mother herself encouraged such pursuits.  And now, he had almost shamed his entire family and besmirched their name for years to come.  He still could, if he was not careful.

_Just do whatever she wants._  He told himself, steeling himself for his confrontation with the unearthly beauty whose equally intimidating wrath he had not heard nor seen a shred of before his run in with her the night before.  The Empress Kagura was not someone to be feared by nobles of his age, but someone to gaze at, and to pray that they might be lucky enough to warrant a dance with her one night at dinner.  Of course, it was nearly impossible to have a chance at her when there were so many elder lords about.  If Kouga was head of his family, he would be powerful enough to earn a dance or two with the legendary beauty, but as it was, his father held that place, and while he had told Kouga that she was a lovely dancer and a skilled conversationalist, Kouga had only been able to watch with his friends from the sidelines, and to spend his time pursuing more accessible creatures.  Like the dozens of noble daughters, all of them beauties in their own right, that made up the Maidens of the Empress, a royal entourage whose main purpose was to look pretty so that they might attract proper husbands.  Every noble his age had a favorite or two, and Kouga was no exception.  It was well and good to gaze at the Empress, but one must look for a wife elsewhere.

"Wait here." He nodded dumbly as the servant directed him to the Empress' sitting room and then left to retrieve the Empress herself.  Kouga hoped he did not wet himself.  It would not be a very good second impression to go with his utterly dismal first.  At this rate, he would be the lowest ranked family in the Palace by the time he was head.  If his father found out, he'd be disowned, and his younger brother Shinga would take his place.  How horrible could his life possibly go?

"Ah, you have come as directed." Kagura entered, and Kouga stood so fast he nearly lost his balance bowing low to her.

"Your Majesty." He intoned, just as practiced countless times to his father's satisfaction.  "It is a pleasure to be here."

"I am very sure it is not." She told him, and he lost his feigned composure then, looking up and finding himself right before her and her ridiculously bright red eyes, a shade he had seen on no other being, Youkai or human in his entire life.  "Please, do not be afraid.  I did not bring you here for some horrible punishment.  Sit, please."

"Yes, Your Majesty." He bowed again before sitting, a mistake in that it caused him almost to miss the seat and fall to the floor.  Even though he felt he covered it rather well, the mirth on Kagura's porcelain-pale face told him she had noticed.

"Would you like some tea?" she asked, ringing a bell that brought a servant with a tray of tea and cakes rushing in.  Kouga nodded, and they both took their selection before the servant left.  He managed to fill his mouth with tea before she could ask him anything, and she apparently did not notice, as she was busy with her own afternoon respite.  After nearly five minutes that felt more like ten years to him, she set her cup down with an empty clink and smiled up at him in a kind matter he found completely suspicious.  "Kouga, you may call me Kagura.  Not Your Majesty, My Lady, or any of that rubbish.  Not when you are in here.  I know something about you, Kouga, and I have taken a liking to you, despite your treatment of my dearest brother."

"Really?" he did not mean to sound so young, but he was so shocked that his voice actually cracked on the word, and he wished he had more tea.  He seemed to be thirsty again.

"Of course, in public, you must always address me more respectfully, but I want you and I to be friends.  Would you like that, Kouga?" she smiled again, sweetly, and he felt a twinge in his gut.  His mind was currently battling within itself.

_She's gorgeous.  How can anyone be that gorgeous?_

_You only think that because her gown is cut so low her breasts look like they're about to fall out._

_Look at her eyes, when she smiles like that.  It looks like she knows the answers to all of life's mysteries._

_Like how to get you off?_

_Shut up, why are you even suspicious of her?  She's the Empress!  And she's beautiful, and she wants to be friends!  This is the best day ever!_

_What if it's a trick?_

_What sort of trick?  A trick that means I have to be seen with the Empress, thus making me the envy of all my friends?  That's a really cruel trick to play._

_Whatever, don't say I didn't warn you._

"Yes, that would be very nice." He answered, his face flushing as she reached across the table to pat his hand, a move that caused her cleavage to strain against the top of her gown and his eyes to therefore strain in their sockets.

_Her face, look at her face._

"Very good, Kouga." She squeezed his hand and then released it.  "So then, please, tell me about yourself."

_My name is Kouga ka'Ookami, I'm nearly fifteen years old, and I am staring at your breasts._

_Face, look at her_ face, _for the love of everything dear to you._

_What, they are nice breasts, aren't they?_

_You are utterly hopeless._

"Well, as you know, I am the eldest son of the ka'Ookami family." He tried his best to ignore his inner dialogue.  And Kagura's cleavage.  It was painfully distracting.  "I have seven younger siblings, four of which are brothers, and three of which are daughters."

"I had heard your family was large.  What a trial, growing up with so many children in one house." Kagura clicked her tongue and shifted her position to one that showed her cleavage even better.  "I have only one sibling, a younger sister."

"Father told me it was like practice for being a successful lord, having to deal with so many people at once who all want their own way." Kouga told her, trying to stare at the tapestry on her wall.  It did not have breasts, and therefore was not going to get him into trouble if he did not stop staring at it in precisely thirty seconds.  Kagura started laughing then, and he realized she had been amused by his comment, but the sound took him by such surprise that he turned and found his eyes glued on her cleavage yet again.

_How does it even stay in when she laughs like that?  It has got to be seconds from breaking out._

_Stop staring before she notices and has you castrated, idiot!_

"Kouga, would you like to see a picture of my sister?" Kagura asked, her head tilted to one side slightly, and he found himself nodding before he even thought the question over.  "Come with me, then." She stood, and he rose immediately, following her through a doorway that he realized only too late led to her private bedroom.  Kagura was sitting on the bed, leaning over the nightstand drawer and rustling through its contents while her tongue found its way to her upper lip.  Kouga realized belatedly that he was experiencing a tightening in his lower abdomen that would get him in trouble as soon as Kagura noticed, so he hid himself by moving over to her bed and standing just behind the red velvet drapes hanging from the canopy.

_Think of something other than her chest and her mouth, idiot!  You are going to become a eunuch if you don't!_

_Come on…remember that time you walked in on mother and father?_

_Ew, okay, that worked._

"Just over here." She patted the bed just beside her, and he gulped, moving to sit next to her as she produced a small sketch of two girls, one of which was clearly a younger Kagura, and the other of which he could only assume was her sister.  "There I am, and that is Kanna.  It was done just before I came here, you know.  Nearly six years ago, now.  It makes me feel a bit old, looking at it."

"You are not old, My Lady." He told her immediately, and when she turned her gaze to him, he felt his face flush.  "I mean, Kagura."

"Yes, that is right, we are friends, are we not?" she asked, and she smiled again.  Her mouth was very fascinating, this close up.  "Kouga, would you keep something secret for me, from all of your friends and your siblings and even your parents?"

"A…anything you want, my…Kagura, I mean." He was having a hard time concentrating on propriety, especially when he was expected to address the Empress by her first name only.

"Well then, now that we can trust each other," she leaned forward, her lips burning like flames against his, and that tightness was back, and he could not banish it no matter how he tried to think of something else.  "I want you to do me a favor, Kouga, dear." And then her hand moved to somewhere no one had _ever_ touched him before, and he thought he might explode, or at least lose all function in his brain and body all at once, but that was not necessary.  Kagura took care of everything, and when it was ended, she helped him dress, patted him on the back, kissed his cheek, and sent him on his way.

After he was gone, Kagura went to tell Sesshoumaru that she had found a breeding stud for them, and they both laughed over it before having tea with Inuyasha, and then going to dinner.

Kouga watched Kagura blissfully as he ate his dinner, not hearing more than three words his friends were saying, but noting with displeasure each and every noble who danced with the beautiful Empress before she bid them all goodnight and left with the Emperor.  He could not be too upset, though.

She had invited him to tea next Wednesday, as well.  That would be very nice.

*****

The End (Of Part 15, That Is)


	17. Words

I swear people, if you ask me about Kagome, I'll kill her off, I don't care if it fucks up the rest of the story.  She's actually BEEN mentioned, and if you can't notice it, don't keep nagging me, it only irritates me that you think I can't remember people that are so important.  Everyone who isn't nagging me about it, thank you.  I love you for your lack of nagging.

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 16

*****

"My daughter has been spending a good deal of her time with the young Lord ka'Ookami as of late, it seems." Naraku sat comfortably on a chaise in Kijo's private chambers with the Empress Mother herself curled up next to him, peering at the report he was reading from their personal head of intelligence, Kodoku, who was one of Sesshoumaru's very own personal servants, thanks to Kijo's maneuvering.  His weekly reports included the dates, times, and natures of all visits to the Imperial Chambers, as well as any facts or suspicions gleaned from the rulers themselves or weeded out from gossip amongst the other menials.

"Yes, but that is good news, my dears brother." Kijo wove her fingers through his dark, wavy locks.  "His father is a supporter of our causes, and the young Lord has shown a good deal of promise himself."

"Has he, then?" Naraku did not sound as though he expected an answer for his softly spoken question.  Instead, he shifted his own free hand, moving fingertips slowly over his companion's shoulder.  "I would be pleased with this revelation had I not long since decided that while we controlled them separately, our children have been utterly unmanageable since we united them.  I must say that when it comes to Kagura, I am always suspicious of her intentions, as they seem most often aimed at opposing my own hopes."

"She is rather fractious, isn't she?" Kijo considered.  "Shall we have it investigated, then?  Surely Kodoku can serve tea personally to the Empress and her new favorite guest.  Look here, he has seen her on four separate occasions in the last week alone, and as you may recall, he was reported visiting twice last week, and three times the week before that."

"Very good." Naraku's fingers left Kijo's shoulder to underscore the neatly written words he had now moved on to.  "Kagura's bed has been occupied at least twice in the past week.  Noises were heard that were quite unmistakable, once at teatime, and another time in the middle of the night.  This is very telling, do you not think?"

"As I told you, she is a lovely young woman, and my son could only possibly restrain himself for so long.  Beautiful or not, all men have the same needs, as you know well enough, my dearest." Kijo smiled wickedly and stretched against her brother.  "In no time, we will hear good news, I am sure."

"And after the child is secured, we shall move." Naraku assured her.  "The babe cannot learn to love its parents and their foolish ideals.  The only option is to raise it on our own.  I am sure with no interference from foolish parents, we shall not raise another rebellious wretch."

"It is sad, though." Kijo pouted slowly, moving her hand to trace the line of Naraku's jaw, attempting to distract him from the report.  "I had hoped Sesshoumaru would learn the wisdom of our ways.  He is so very beautiful, and I would have enjoyed spending the rest of my life beside such a creature."

"Am I not enough for you, dear sister?" Naraku asked, the report discarded, his grin purely wicked, not in the least bit worried. As answer, she pressed her lips to his as he shifted so that they could move closer to each other.  Now, she was practically in his lap, her arms wound around his neck, and his holding her close, working at the back of her corset with practiced ease and without any rush.  "Or perhaps you miss your late husband."

"Hardly." Kijo snorted in a way that was not at all elegant or ladylike.  Only Naraku was allowed to see her in this way, bare, free, true to what he had known since their days growing up together in the same home.  "You know that I found him pretty, but my heart is always yours, brother.  I cannot abide such weaklings, no matter how fine their cheekbones are."

"He resembles you a good deal, you know." Naraku placed a light kiss on the top of Kijo's head as she frowned at the many buckles and ties that were momentarily separating his chest from her own flesh.  She worked at them diligently, but looked up slightly at his comment.  "Sesshoumaru, that is.  Of course, his father is very strongly visible, but your grace and beauty make that boy so much more gorgeous than the other that there is no comparison.  It is obvious which came from finer stock."

"I had a dream about the three of us, all together at once." She told him as she bent back to her work, removing layers as easily as he edged her corset off, leaving him to the relatively simple gown underneath.  "It was lovely, the color of his hair, melding with yours, melding with mine, our skin pressed tight and hot," she sighed softly as pulled her up in a way that ground her over his tightening breeches.  "Both of you in me, in each other, happily complete.  It's a shame he'd never agree to it."

"A shame." Naraku agreed, "Of course, if you wish for an extra member, the women in the Apartment are rather appealingly obedient, as I have told you before.  You have watched me on countless occasions, and yet you take nothing for yourself." He had unfastened the last of her ties, and they both paused while she pulled his shirt off and he pulled her undergarments off before she wiggled down to work at the tie on his breeches, something far less complicated than the first set of ties and buckles and fastenings.  He sat up while she worked, arms going behind her as he laved her neck with his tongue.  "You know, in only seven months, the dear little Kikyo will be of age, and then we can _both_ taste her untainted fruits, if you would like to."

"That sounds lovely, brother." She ground down onto him now that she had successfully unclad him totally.  "Let us move.  The velvet of this chaise was rather expensive, and I fear it would stain."

"Excellent thought, my dear Kijo." He kissed her roughly, staying in her as he carried her to the bed.  "Tell me what you want." He hovered over her, his mouth ghosting over her flesh, her legs keeping him pulled into her.

"I want you." She told him, her voice husky and rough.  "I want you in me."

"I love you."

----------

"No, that is not how it goes!  You have changed the story, Inuyasha." Rin giggled, pulling off the circlet she had borrowed momentarily from Kagura to act out a story Kikyo had told them countless times.  Inuyasha was acting opposite her, and they had managed well enough until he seemed to lose his direction in the middle, and began making things up, much to Kagura and Sesshoumaru's amusement.  Rin visited the rulers with Inuyasha at least once a week, and they talked of many things, from politics to fairy tales to linguistics.  It had been the mention of a certain story that Rin and Inuyasha both loved dearly that had prompted Kagura to entreat they perform it.

"How do you mean?" Inuyasha looked bewildered.  "Doesn't he have her make any more gold?"

"No, silly, he promises to marry her after the third night.  Then when the little elf man comes, she does not have anything to offer him, and _that_ is when she promises her first born child to him."  Rin explained.  "So later the name guessing comes into play, as you may recall."

"Oh…yes, you're right." Inuyasha laughed sheepishly.  "We should skip ahead to that part."

"No!  I enjoy this too much for you to cheat me of a full performance." Kagura protested, hand outstretched.  "I even loaned you my circlet."

"Well, once we're married, I will need the crown, if you don't mind." Rin smiled winningly, and Kagura nodded, waving her hand lightly for them to continue.  "Now then…you were threatening me, Inuyasha."

"Alright." He smiled, enjoying acting out this story even if he had lost track of the events halfway through.  "You will make all of this straw into gold by dawn, or I will cut off your pretty little head!"

"Oh no!" Rin squealed and ran to hide behind Sesshoumaru's tall chair, the young Emperor clearly trying to quell his smile.

"If you do as I say this night, I will make you my queen, and you will only have to make children for the rest of your days." Inuyasha assured her.

"As if that's much better." Kagura laughed while Rin emerged from the chair's back and curtsied.

"I shall do my best, my King." She told Inuyasha.  Just as she raised herself, a servant bustled in, looking a bit worried.

"Your Highness, his Lordship, Kouga ka'Ookami is here as you requested for him to be." She explained.  "Shall I tell him you are busy?"

"Oh…dear me, I almost forgot." Kagura rose, causing her husband to stand as well out of propriety.  "The time flew by without my notice…well, tell him I will be but a moment, but send him in as soon as you have water boiling for tea." The servant curtsied low and left, while Kagura sighed and crossed the floor to hug first Rin and then Inuyasha.  "I am sorry, I shall have to cut our visit short.  Perhaps you can finish up in Sesshoumaru's sitting room for him and he can fill me in on how the story ends later?"

"I would hate to intrude in that way." Rin immediately responded.  She was not sure she felt comfortable around Sesshoumaru when he did not have Kagura restraining his tongue.  Ever since that first meeting, she felt nervous around him, and she was sure he would not want her dirty, Gifted presence making a mess of his own private sitting room.  "I am a bit tired.  Perhaps Inuyasha would not mind taking me back to the Apartment."

"That will be fine." Inuyasha assured her, noticing that his brother was glaring at them both in a very unnerving fashion.  He spared the older man a quick smile before nearly fleeing the room, rushing past Kouga on his way out, and not even noticing until Rin was safe in the Apartment that the young man had not said a single snide word to him.

Odd.

And why was he visiting Kagura?

Very odd.

----------

"I think they really enjoyed it, even Sesshoumaru, and he is so very hard to read."  Rin was telling Kikyo about her visit with no small amount of pleasure.  "But I could have sworn a smile found his face once or twice.  He thinks he is so very serious and solemn all the time.  It must be a horrid bore for him."

"Which is why he is so fortunate to have your company, sweet Rin." Kikyo was watering her plants, acquired thanks to Rin's outings, and intended to produce the ingredients in Kaede's old eye color tea.  Rin did not see the point in all of it, but it kept Kikyo occupied, and seemingly a bit happy, so that was very fine.  "You could win the heart of a stone if it had such a thing."

"That is a funny thing to say, Kikyo." Rin giggled.  "I hardly think myself charming as you say, but I do enjoy spending time with them.  Kagura is very funny, and quite kind."

"I had heard as much from Inuyasha.  I have seen her only twice, I think.  Sesshoumaru I have seen three times, all of them searching for his brother." Kikyo explained.  "He came close to sleeping in here, some nights, but the women would never allow it, especially now that he's of age."

"Inuyasha would never—" Rin was cut off by the opening of the door, a sound she dreaded after being dropped off by Inuyasha.  She had been very well protected by Kikyo, so far, who had kept her hidden and on his three visits so far, Lord Naraku distracted.  But it could not last forever.  Eventually, one of the men would point to her, hidden in the back of Kikyo's niche, pillows surrounding her as she pretended to sleep, and she would be lost for what to do if she wanted to escape.  There was no escape, it seemed.  Only mourning the loss.

"Inuyasha is not here." Kikyo's voice brought Rin's head out of the pillows a fraction, and she spotted Sesshoumaru.  The Emperor, the most beautiful man she had ever seen, and he never visited the Apartment except to find his brother.  Not that he needed a non-consensual partner when he had a nation of willing mistresses at his beck and call.  _None of them are dirty Gifted girls, either._  Rin did not know why that made her so very bitter.  What did she care?  It only meant one less rapist to fear every night.

"I am not looking for my wayward brother." Sesshoumaru stepped toward the niche a bit more, his hair glistening in complimentary candlelight.  "I came for you." He pointed to Rin as though he were passing some sort of edict, and she felt her stomach drop.

_What?_

"What do you want her for?" Kikyo demanded, standing up and stretching to her not entirely impressive full height.  "She is tired."

"It matters not to you what I want her for.  I am Emperor, and I will take her, tired or not." He snapped, and Rin felt herself rising without a second thought.  Only when she was at his side did she realize what had just happened, and she immediately had the urge to slap him.

_Am I a pet of some sort?_

"Come, Rin." He turned and left without another word to Kikyo, who looked rather concernedly after her friend.  Odd that after all this time, Sesshoumaru would wander down to the Apartment.  But perhaps all men had a time when they felt the need to try it, at least once.

_But with my friend…Inuyasha's friend.  Why?_

There were no answers for her, and she could only wait up, worrying over where Rin might be, what she might be doing, and when she might possibly return.  She did not have long to wait, however.  After two hours, Rin returned with a servant who dropped her off in the Apartment amongst several curious stares from slightly envious women in the Apartment.  Kikyo rushed to hug her strangely cheerful seeming friend.

"Are you alright?" Kikyo asked.  "What did he…and you…both of you, I mean to say…"

"He wanted a story." Rin told her in a soft tone full of wonder.  "I was asked to act out a story, and when I was done…"

"When you were done?" Kikyo prompted anxiously.

"He offered me tea, and when I told him I was tired, he sent me back after thanking me for the story."  Rin giggled slightly, obviously still confused by what had happened.  "He even clapped for me.  I thought he hated me.  He let me into his bedroom, Kikyo.  He even seemed…sad when I left.  He liked the story!"

"Maybe, Rin." Kikyo smiled warmly.  "He just liked the teller."

"What does that mean?" Rin wanted to know.

"Nothing at all."

*****

The End (Of Part 16, That Is)


	18. Sensations

And on we go!

*****

Gossamer Dreams

Part 17

*****

"I love you." His voice was raw, like the rest of him, collapsed on top of her, salty skin and sweat smelling thickly of his musk and the cologne he wore regularly.  "So much."  It was at moments like this when Kagura felt her throat close and her muscles clench, and she could not decide whether that ache in her chest was regret or shame or irritation with his attachment.  Sir Kouga ka'Ookami had been only too easy to seduce, and his loyalty was utterly hers to command, but at the same time, she could recall the words Sesshoumaru and her had exchanged earlier that month.

_"Kodoku has been inquiring about your new beau.  You know he will tell your father everything."_

_I know.  Only too well.  If father realizes that we are subverting his attempts at a twisted heir-child, he will be most put out.  He might kill Kouga.  Or banish him, at the very least.  He still has that power, no matter how Sesshoumaru and I pose and manipulate what we can grasp._  She sighed softly, annoyed to see that she was _glad_ of that weight against her chest, the pressure, and the feeling of him still inside her, both of them still coming down from the experience.  Even more irritating was the fact that she was playing with his hair, and she did not want to stop, as she did not want him to stop placing lazy, sated kisses along her shoulder.  One thing she could say for the young man, once he had become accustomed to his newfound role, he was certainly able to keep her satisfied, and then some.  Of course, maybe that was the problem.  It was the first time in her life when she had been able to view sex as something more than a dirty act of anger and pain and bitterness and violence, and it all seemed very odd to her that she was actually _enjoying_ it.  In her experience, only her father enjoyed it, and most likely, her aunt did as well.  They were evil.  So…did that make her evil?  Kouga seemed to enjoy it, too, so perhaps the both of them were engaging in something altogether horrible, but that could not stop her from liking it.  She felt vaguely guilty.  Married, sleeping with another man…but then, she had her suspicions about Sesshoumaru and Rin, and while he vehemently denied her casual insinuations, she knew that they had private tea often enough these days.  Actually, she thought they were a good match, despite the fact that he was her husband already.  _It would be perfectly acceptable for him to take on a concubine, I know.  Even several, though I do not see him as the type to love more than one woman, or to treat affection casually._

"You're heavy." She spoke finally, and it hurt to say it, though it was half-true.  He was heavy, all muscle and lean flesh toned from his typical young noble pursuits, fencing, horseback riding, and hunting.  His flesh was warm at all times, hot and sweat-slick at times like these, and always firm, sun-dark, and just rough enough to send tingles through her entire being.  His arms were easily twice as thick as hers, and while she felt she was rather toned for a noblewoman expected to get her main exercise from the practice of waving her fan on hot days, his lines and bulges were something that fascinated and strangely aroused her.  It made her feel a bit frail, and slight, but that was somehow not a big bother for her, as he seemed to take as much pleasure in her form as she did in his.  However large he was in comparison, though, she loved the feel of the weight and the heat on her and in her and around her, but she was irked by the thought of her dependence on _this_ and on him, and how she now had to sneak out of her chambers in the dead of night to meet with him since Kodoku had grown so watchful.  Of course, this new arrangement seemed exciting to Kouga, and annoyingly enough, to her as well.  Something about meeting by chance in the corridors, and then ducking behind a pillar for stolen kisses and a promised rendezvous whispered in a heated rasp…slipping into a set of servants robes and hurrying toward his chambers with her face lowered to avoid being recognized by anyone she might run into, only to have him take those robes off of her in the most painstakingly slow fashion possible…all of it was very exhilarating to her.  It made their trysts three times as pleasurable, especially since she had no need to keep her voice down, as no one would think twice of the charming young Lord meeting with some lady or other in private.  As long as they did not know _who_ that lady was, exactly, all was well.

"Sorry," he rolled off, and though he managed to sound natural enough, she detected injury in his tone.  Of course.  He declares his love, as he did most nights, it seemed, and she simply tells him to get off of her.  She had never answered the way she supposed he expected, with a like declaration of affection.  But she was always gentle enough with him.  His loyalty and adoration were things that she held close and guarded jealously.  "I had tea with my parents today." He told her.

"And how was that, then?" she felt a bit guilty about her thoughtless reply to his words, and she rolled up against him, kissing the side of his bare chest as he let his arm wrap around her, tracing slow circles over her back.

"They want me to hurry up and marry." He answered, and their was that note to his voice that told her she was expected to say something rather specific to this assertion, but what it was, she hadn't the slightest idea.

"And what do you say to that?" she asked.  "You are young, but about the right age."

"I am not so young." He was always insulted when she brought up his age.  "Barely below you."

"Right now," she smiled wickedly as she wrapped a leg around him and pulled herself into a straddle on top of him.  "I believe you are most _decidedly_ below me, Lord ka'Ookami." She accented the title with a grind of her hips, and was rather gratified at the noise he made, his hands finding their way up her legs, stroking a casual path from her hips to her breasts and back down.  "And besides that, the question is not your age, whatever it might be.  It is your feelings on the topic of marriage."

"I do not want to marry." He told her, his hips twisting in desperate arousal as she continued to tease him, grinding against him rhythmically enough to gain his interest, but not to allow him any sort of release.

"Why ever not, my young lord?  All the fashionable young nobles are doing it, you know." She giggled slightly, letting the sound fall off into a sort of purr as he decided to focus his attentions on her chest.  "If you do not marry, how do you intend to produce an heir for your family to spoil just as you have been spoiled?"

"I would rather have a hundred heirs I can never hope to claim with you, than one borne of another woman." He spoke the words softly, with obvious sincerity.  "I do not wish to marry because I cannot have the only one I want."

Kagura froze momentarily, but she caught herself and continued moving, covering the slip with a wide smile.  "That is a silly thing to say, Kouga." She told him.  "You have me right now, and you can marry any young lady you please.  I know you have had your eye on the young Lady ka'Neko for some time."

"That was nothing.  I liked her, and found her endearing, but it was nothing to this, Kagura." Whenever he spoke her name, he managed to make it sound like the most delectable sound ever created by a mouth struggling to communicate.  "I love you.  I've told you a hundred times."

"Kouga." She really stopped this time, shifting to lie on top of him with her face very near his.  "Please, do not be difficult.  Do you really think we can continue on like this forever?"

"I do not want to marry." He reiterated, his face stuck in a pout that she somehow could not help but find heartrending even now.  "Unless it is to you.  I cannot have you that way, and so I will have you this way."

"If you do not grow up, young man," she emphasized the word young, and it clearly hurt Kouga, but she could not be bothered with that now.  He was deliberately confusing her emotions, something she hated.  "You will not have me any way at all, except for in your dreams."

"Even if you hate me and scorn me and leave me to be alone, I will never love another." He told her, his voice shaking with the strength of his conviction.  "Do not call me young, and do not doubt my affections as genuine, for you clearly know nothing of what I feel.  To you, this is only a game, but it is my _heart_, Kagura."

"You are such a woman, at times, Kouga." She rolled off of him, turning to grab her negligee from the floor beside the bed.  This was clearly a waste of her time.  "No wonder I am still without child."  As soon as the words left her lips, she regretted them, her entire body froze, and she had a sudden mental image of Kouga slapping her senseless, as her own father had done only too many times.  However, he was so silent and motionless in that moment that she could barely hear his breath.

"So." He spoke finally, and the pain was so thick in his tone that _she_ hurt with the weight of it.  "Not only am I young and stupid and foolish, I am also completely without masculinity?  It is nice to finally know how you feel about me, Kagura.  All those nights, I confessed my feelings to you, and you were only wondering how such a woman managed to have at least semi-functional male parts.  I do not wish to marry, but you do not wish to spend more time with me than what is necessary to grant you your wish of an heir.  And might I ask, while we are at it, being honest and all, why is it that the much lauded Emperor cannot grant you this one thing, my Lady?  Is he, perhaps, otherwise inclined?  Do you not please him just as I do not please you?"

"Kouga!" she never raised her voice at him in anger, but this time, it was too much.  "Stop.  Stop right now.  I did not mean it, and I am sorry, but that gives you no right to…to…you cannot understand what the situation between Sesshoumaru and I truly is."

"I have heard that he does not take pleasure in women.  Is that true?" he asked again, clearly caring nothing for her apology.  She turned, slapping him sharply.

"Do not go rumor-mongering, Kouga.  You are too good for it, and I will not have it from you again." She felt foolish again at her words.  They said too much, but they _did_ stop Kouga's sudden anger he sat back, clearly unconcerned with the sharp red welt she had left on his right cheek.

"Kagura, I am sorry for that." He told her sheepishly.  "I just have a hard time controlling myself when I think that perhaps you think so little of me."

"Kouga, if I thought so little of you, I would not be here with you now." She tried to sound scolding, but she only came across as slightly plaintive.  "I would not want the child of a foolish thing who was nothing more than a child himself." Kouga leaned forward then, pulling her back onto the bed and kissing her thoroughly.  She decided that even if he took her words to mean so much deeper feelings toward him, that was all well and good.  After all, it all felt so lovely, why fight it?  Even if it was evil, which she had doubted for some time now, it was the best thing she had, and she cherished it secretly and deeply.

----------

The news was the happiest, and so the banquet that spring evening was especially splendid for most of those present.  Dancing and drinking and merry-making were rampant, and there seemed to be no limit of smiling and boisterous story-telling by those who had made a bit _too_ merry, perhaps.  True, the Imperial Palace was a place of intrigues and betrayals and plots within plots and all of that, but at it's very basic, it was a strangely knit family, and they were all very dependent on those two figureheads sitting at the high table every night, and when it was spoken to all of them that the Empress was at long last pregnant, they were assured that their family would not suffer any great confusion in the years to come, and to all those involved, that was very happy news indeed.

However, Kagome ka'Neko, one of the Empress' Maidens, had noted that one soul in particular seemed not to think the incumbent arrival of a cute baby was such very happy news at all.  At least, if one was to take any meaning from his surly frown and sulking posture and tone, one would derive that he was not in a very good mood, despite the happiness of the evening.  Kagome had no reason to think that he might actually be depressed _by_ the news, since who in their right mind would dislike the idea of a perfectly adorable heir being on it's way to the world?  Clearly, no one in their right mind.  And while she did not feel as though she was a paradigm of political knowledge, she _did_ realize that the ka'Ookami family had been doing better than ever lately, and they were certainly rising in court rank at an admirable rate.  Well, that was to say, Kouga had reached a rank almost equal to his own father, something that had surprised and pleased his family greatly over the past months.  And it had only increased the pressure she was receiving from her aunts in the city, who were currently running the ka'Neko household in the upset after her grandmother had died and no male heir of feasible age could be decided upon.  She needed to accept his suit, and to encourage it, as it had been failing in enthusiasm for the past three months.  In fact, truth be told, ever since he had been shooting up in rank, Kouga had seemingly forgotten about the blue eyed ka'Neko maiden.  Now, of course, his slightly irritating cousin, another Maiden by the name of Ayame ka'Ookami, had volunteered the idea that he had found someone else who was more accepting and more suitable to his desires.  She meant herself, and while Kagome had _tried_ on several occasions to explain to the orange-haired Youkai that Kouga did not seem interested in courting his cousin, however distantly their relation might be.  However, she had never found Ayame's observations more irritating than in this instance, when she most needed Kouga's suit to save her from the only other option she could see for herself.

The pretty young Maiden had been the talk of the court when she first arrived, but interest died off rather quickly when she inadvertently gained the attention of none other than the High Lord Naraku, uncle to the Emperor, and definitely old enough to be Kagome's own father.  She found his suit to be, frankly, rather disgusting.  Ignoring the age issue entirely, Lord Naraku had a horrid habit of saying the most disgusting things possible while leading a terrified young Maiden across the dance floor.  If he thought that his description of what he had done with a pair of concubines only the night before would intrigue her or pique her interest, he was completely mistaken.  By the time Kagome learned to avoid the greasy smile and the honeyed words, the other nobles had all turned from her, since they were horrified of incurring his wrath due to jealousy.  All except the earnestly endearing Kouga ka'Ookami, who seemed either oblivious to the dangers in pursuing her, or completely without care for Naraku's disapproval.

Now, of course, she had decided that her only _real_ choice was to hurry up and have the young Lord ka'Ookami propose to her so that her aunts could stop bickering about money and falling ranks and such and name him head of the family, and have him take on their name, and that would be that.  Problems, within the court and within their ledger, would be solved, and Kagome would be able to feel as though she had not utterly failed her family.  Her grandmother had maintained the rank after her grandfather's death through shear force of will, but the aunts were too busy fighting over every scrap to keep them in a dignified and marriageable position, much to Kagome's dismay.  She did not particularly relish the idea of marrying herself off, but if it was for the good of her family, it seemed a simple enough task.  And so, she had engineered things lately so that she might sit very near Kouga ka'Ookami during functions, and thereby remind him of his seemingly waning affection for her, but so far, it had not seemed to work.  She had never seen a young noble who liked dancing less.  While everyone else was currently pairing off, only a very few still eating and drinking at their tables, Kouga sat sullenly staring out into space, in the direction of the head table, where the beautiful, glowing young Empress was taking the first dance with her equally beautiful husband.  She would be passed around all night if the nobles had their way, but she was in a delicate condition, so of course, the Emperor would have them leave very soon, she was sure.  Of course, Kouga was well known to be close friends with the Empress, so perhaps he was concerned about the strain she was in at the moment.  That would explain his sour mood.

"The young Lady ka'Neko, at my disposal, I presume?" the voice sent Kagome's hopes that Kouga might glance her way plummeting, and she nearly vomited at the smile he offered as he pulled her out to the dance floor.  Of course, she was a perfect lady, as her grandmother had been sure of, and so when she nearly vomited, she only looked vaguely distressed, as though perhaps confused as toward what was going on about her at the moment.  Then they were dancing, and Kagome let herself pretend she was miles away, in her family's country estate, riding a horse across the hillsides, instead of putting up with possibly the lowest form of life ever to grace the Fukumadenian royal court.  The Emperor's _uncle_…Kagome failed to see any resemblance.  "Ah, my dear child, Kagome, time spent with you is truly a pleasure." He was talking to her now, something she dreaded more than all else.  His words were invariably…suggestive.  And so, she filled the conversation with her own words as often as possible so that he would be allowed to say less.

"I am glad that you enjoy my company, Lord Naraku, but as you might not have noticed, I was keeping the Lord ka'Ookami company, as he has been feeling low all evening."  She came up with whatever she could think to say.  "He is close friends with the Empress, and he is worried that she might strain herself at this function, thus causing her child some injury.  It is very noble of him, do you not think?"

"My daughter holds up very well to abuse, I assure you." Naraku winked at her, and she was not sure which of the twenty different interpretations immediately flooding her mind was worst.  "She has long wanted this child more than all else, and she will do everything in her power to protect it, without the help of the young Lord ka'Ookami."

Kagome was well aware that she was making a face that was similar to the expression created by swallowing a lemon, but she could hardly care what Naraku might think.  If he found her unsavory, all the better for her.  Why she even bothered with propriety with him was beyond her.  She supposed it was for her grandmother's sake, in the end.  And that was when something extraordinary happened.  Kagome was just thinking how she wished more than anything else that some kind soul would _save_ her from this torture, and just then, none other than the Prince Inuyasha stepped up to the pair and most expertly cut in.  Naraku glared at his nephew in clear dislike, but there was really no polite way to refuse the Prince his dance, and so, Kagome was handed over.  

She had never danced with Prince Inuyasha before, as she noted that he rarely danced with _anyone_ at all, except for the occasional turn with the Empress, his sister-in-law.  Most people avoided talking to him or about him, as it was a matter of contention between the Empress Mother, who despised him, and the Emperor, who clearly cared for his brother a great deal.  Either side could invoke the wrath of the other, and so Inuyasha sat, night after night, surly, and alone but for his brother and the older man's wife.  She had never noticed that up close, Inuyasha really did look a good deal like his brother, but with more decidedly masculine features.  Same golden eyes and silver hair, same slightly annoyed expression, as if he could not be bothered with the world, or was just thinking of where else he would rather be.  He was shorter, of course, that Kagome had noticed on her own before this, since he always was at his brother's side, but he was still easily taller than her.  Actually, he was about Kouga's height, and they seemed to have a similar build.  But the most fascinating thing were his ears.  Everyone had seen them, but few had been close enough to have a really good look.  Kagome was getting that look at this moment.  They did look a bit like dog ears, but were short and pointy enough to resemble cat ears as well.  They were covered with a soft-looking fuzz of fur the same color as the rest of his hair, and they twitched infinitesimally at the sounds surrounding them.

They were utterly adorable.

"Was he bothering you?" the question caught Kagome off guard, and she nearly choked on her reply.

"The…Lord Naraku, you mean?"  she immediately went into Proper Lady mode.  "Not at all, I am sure that he was perfectly good company, although I am pleased to be able to dance with a new partner once in a while, my Prince."

"So he was bothering you, then." He chuckled, and Kagome felt her eyes bulge in surprise.  "I can translate the truth when you feed me that bunch of drivel, so don't try to hide behind propriety and etiquette.  I have not lived my whole life in the Palace and learned nothing."

"I…I am sorry.  I just…I was taught that whatever one thinks privately, there is no reason to publicly criticize a gentleman." Kagome explained, flushing at being caught out so expertly.

"Then there is no problem.  If ever there was someone who did not qualify as gentle, it is Naraku." Inuyasha told her, laughing again as her eyes bulged further in shock.  "Am I scandalizing you?"

"No…I just…you speak so frankly!" she giggled nervously.  "I never knew the court contained such honesty."

"All dances and postures, I know." Inuyasha nodded slightly.  "I understand what you mean.  I apologize for not saving you before, however.  I have noticed you, but you did not seem to mind Naraku's attentions, and so I saved my efforts for elsewhere.  But the face you made tonight was clear enough to me, so here I am."

"A regular shining hero." She smiled softly.  "Do you read fairy tales?"

"All kinds." He nodded enthusiastically.  "My…friend loves them very much, and we read them together endlessly.  I have hundreds memorized, it seems, but I was recounting one for the Empress and the Emperor the other day and I seemed to forget some of the details, which was rather aggravating."

"My favorite is the story about the young girl who is saved from poverty and the cruelty of her stepfamily by a prince with a glass slipper.  Do you know it?" Kagome found she was actually enjoying herself.  This conversation was as far from proper court etiquette as most things could get, but in a very pleasant way, unlike with Naraku.

"Oh, yes." He nodded again.  "That is a very good story.  Oh!  I almost forgot, so caught in being the hero and all…" Inuyasha shook his head as though a bit embarrassed.  "I am the Crown Prince Inuyasha, at your service."

"Ah, yes, proper introductions as though I do not know your name." She smiled and bowed her head slightly.  "I am Kagome ka'Neko, Maiden of the Empress."

"I know your name as well, I must admit." He told her, and she actually blinked in surprise.  "I made a point of learning it when I first saw you.  You see…my friend looks very much like you, and at first, I thought it was her, but your eyes and ears are a bit different, I admit."

"Really?  Who is your friend that resembles me so closely?" Kagome wanted to know.

"She…no one you would know." Inuyasha seemed to clam up.  "I must bid you goodnight, now, Lady ka'Neko.  It was a pleasure meeting you."

"It was a pleasure meeting you, as well." She answered automatically, still feeling put out as he fled the scene.  It might be wise to call it an early evening, she decided.  Kouga was nowhere to be seen, and Naraku was leering at her from the head table.  With that thought, she left.

*****

The End (Of Part 17, That Is)


	19. Grasping

Now that you all know I'm not lying when I say I didn't forget about Kagome…even though she's been around for quite some time, and no one really noticed it except Jade…we'll be able to move on with the plot and perhaps I'll hear less of the redundant "Where are Kagome?" reviews that I was thinking of building a bonfire with.  Anyway, someone suggested we up the rating to R over here, and I can definitely understand the concern, so if you would all be so kind as to voice your views on the subject, I will either change or keep the current rating for next time.  Therefore, if you do not read the author's notes, you'll be shit out of luck next week when you can't find this story because it's now rated R, but if you _do_ read them, you'll know to check.  And thus, I let the number of readers dwindle ever closer to nil.  Though I'll always have Jade.  Good old Jade.  She doesn't ask where Kagome is unless she's joking.  And how come no one asks after Sango or Miroku?  You guys are so…primary-character-centric…it hurts my feelings…no, okay, that's a lie.  I clearly don't _have_ feelings.  Bwahahaha!

Gossamer Dreams

Part 18

"What story shall I tell you today, Your Majesty?" Rin spoke as politely as ever whilst addressing the emperor.  No matter how many stories she acted out for him, she could not make herself address him casually, as she felt positive that no matter what he insisted, he would be offended by her lack of honorific while addressing him.

"Rin, why not tell me a true story this time?" he suggested, annoyed that she still referred to him so deferentially.  "Something from your life, perhaps."

"My life is not very exciting, I'm afraid." She demurred, looking into her teacup as if it were positively the most fascinating example of drink ware she had ever seen.  "There are no stories to tell that are exciting or adventurous like the ones I usually tell."

"I do not need it to be an adventure if you are in it." Sesshoumaru told her.  "You needn't act it out, either.  Why not tell me an experience that changed you especially?"

"Changed me…" Rin paused to think, taking a deep drink from her cup and glancing at Sesshoumaru doubtfully.  "Would Your Majesty truly finding something so tedious entertaining?  Surely you would prefer something with dragons and damsels?"

"The imagination can only go so far in helping us to escape our own lives." He told her softly.  "I find it fitting that Inuyasha knows so many tales, as his life has been rather strife-ridden.  I can only assume the same is true for you."

"My life is not so hard, really." Rin turned back to her tea.  "For a Gifted in Fukumaden, I suppose."

"Surely you can tell me of one experience?" he entreated her again.  "I know so little of your life, Rin.  Only of your stories, and none of those have shaped you as surely as your own experiences must have.  Please, I would very much like to hear such a tale."

"I am sorry." She sighed deeply and set her teacup down, standing up with no small amount of will.  "I cannot do that."

"Why not?" Sesshoumaru was baffled.  What part of her life was so horrible that she was unwilling to reveal any of it?  "Surely it cannot have all been horrible."

"No, it was not." She told him, her mouth set and her hands clenched tightly as he stood up to face her more easily.  Of course, now she was forced to look up to see him correctly.  "But you are the Emperor of Fukumaden, and my kind are fugitives in your land, damned by our own misfortunes at birth.  My whole life I have been shaped and changed by others of my sort, and to tell you of these people would only bring your hatred for Gifted down upon them as well.  I do not mind serving in the Chambers, even though I will be put to death when I grow old in any case.  However, I would not wish it on any of my most beloved friends and family, and therefore, I cannot tell my stories to one such as you.  I do not mind your disdain, but please, spare my memories from your mockery.  As Emperor, do you not reign over enough without that as well?"

"I do not want that, Rin." Sesshoumaru seemed a bit set back by her sudden speech.  "So this is what you have thought of me, because of my insensitive words from so long ago.  I apologize now as I should have done more properly then."  To Rin's amazement, the man lowered himself to his knees, head bent as he reached for her right hand and kissed the back of it so gently it made her feel as though she were floating.  "Dearest Rin, you have shown me that what I have learned is not always true, and that just as there is bad to be found in Youkai, there is good in Gifted, and I should never judge based on what my eyes can see, but on what my heart tells me."

"Please," she entreated after a moment more of shock on her part.  "Get up, that isn't necessary."

"If you truly think I disdain you, then it must be more than necessary." He countered.  "Do you truly think I bring you here most every night to privately mock you and your grand stories?  I spend time with you because it makes me happier than anything else can, and if you would only see that I care for you such a great deal, it would make my heart rest much easier."

"Your Majesty…" Rin was blushing deeply, and then he finally stood, his hand reaching to cradle the side of her face.

"Please, you may call me Sesshoumaru." He whispered it, but she was so close that she had no trouble hearing.  "Just Sesshoumaru."  And he leaned closer, until he could taste her breath, his lips quivering slightly in anticipation of meeting hers at long last.

----------

Kagura pursed her lips as she looked down at the hastily scrawled note that Kouga had just sent only five minutes before he was expected to come for a private tea.  It was like all the others, and it was clearly not something she wanted to see from the angry twitch of her eyebrow.  Rising in a huff, she swept into the other room and burst into Sesshoumaru's chambers without so much as a knock of warning.  She ignored the fact that her husband looked like he was very nearly blushing, and the fact that he had been clearly about to kiss the crimson-faced Rin who was now busying herself with the task of smoothing down already perfectly attended skirts.

"You.  You are a man, explain this to me in a way that I might understand." Kagura thrust the note in Sesshoumaru's face, and he took it, still a bit off balance.

"Poor penmanship." He managed after a moment in a very dry tone.  Kagura was not entertained.  Rin looked like she wanted very much to leave, though she knew well enough she could not walk the corridors safely on her own.  "I believe it says, 'I regret to inform you that I am unable to attend our appointed meeting, as I am needed elsewhere.'  Who is this from?"

"Kouga ka'Ookami." She answered, her face flushed with anger almost as dark as Rin's still was from embarrassment.  "He has not been by once since the announcement, and that night when I approached him for a dance, he fled the scene as though he could not get away from me fast enough.  Explain to me, my dear husband, why it is that the father of our child wants nothing to do with me."

"He is surely…" Rin cut herself off by clapping both hands over her mouth and turning bright purple eyes to Sesshoumaru who afforded her the briefest of nods.  She dropped her hands and began blushing all over again.  Clearly, they had not yet discussed the depth of Kagura's relationship with the Lord ka'Ookami.

"Kagura, I think that first, you must calm yourself.  It does the situation no good if you storm about as though every unfortunate event is an intentional attack upon your person.  You must learn to control yourself." He advised, at which point she picked up the nearest chalice and threw it straight at his head.  Clearly used to this sort of behavior, Sesshoumaru ducked and moved Rin out of the way in one neatly controlled move.

"Control myself?  I am pregnant, if you had forgotten, oh great Emperor of Fukumaden, and I may behave however I please.  If I insist that Kouga is acting like a complete miscreant, then that is the truth of it.  Now, as you are male, and utterly insensitive to my delicate condition, I will forgive you your lack of tact if you will only tell me what is wrong with that idiotic man."

"Maybe he heard that you have taken to throwing chalices, and decided most wisely to avoid you until this unpleasant phase of the pregnancy has ended." Sesshoumaru guessed, earning him another broken chalice.  "Now, if you please, I was entertaining the young lady here, and if you have nothing more to say to me, I suggest you see to your young man and leave me out of it, as I cannot control his actions, despite what you apparently believe."

"I hate you." Kagura turned on her heel and left, heading straight out the door of the Imperial Chambers and following a path that she had long-since memorized and was even able to walk in the dead of night.  In fact, that had been the most common time she had taken this path.  She was in a rage, and it seemed clear to all those she passed, who quickly bowed, curtsied, and ran away.  And then, there she was, pounding the door so hard that her fist hurt with the texture of the wood.  The servant who opened the door took one look at her and squeaked before looking as though he might wet himself.

"I am here for the young lord ka'Ookami." She told him in a tone that brooked absolutely no arguments or excuses.  "Lead me to him."

"He is not…I mean…come in." the servant was clearly torn between fear of his master and fear of this terrifyingly hormonal empress standing before him.  The empress won, and so in a matter of moments, she was led to the room she had spent so many evenings, and there he was, looking shocked, confused, and a bit angry (probably with the servant, who quickly ran away.)

"How did you get in here?" was the first thing he thought to ask.

"In case you could not recall, I am the Empress of Fukumaden, and in my own Palace, my word carries a bit more weight than that of an irresponsible young lord who cannot even deem to keep his appointments." She started in on her grievances at once.  "You are, without a doubt, young Lord ka'Ookami, the worst father ever.  And I am the daughter of the Lord _Naraku_.  Where is it that you are so urgently required to go that you might not spend a scant hour of your highly busy schedule with your lover and her unborn child.  Had you forgotten that I was pregnant, perhaps?  Maybe it slipped your mind, as did all your apparently meaningless declarations of love and eternal devotion to _me_."

"Are you quite done?" Kouga seemed ready to explode himself.  "Maybe _you_ had forgotten that your father's spy, Kodoku, was suspicious of our close relationship even before you conceived, leading to our secret trysts.  Perhaps you thought he would not notice if I came to spend a few hours a day cuddling with a very pregnant empress while her husband is in the next room busying himself with that new concubine of his."

"You know about her?" Kagura's eyes widened.

"Everyone knows, my Lady." He rolled his eyes at her in irritation.  "Nothing stays secret for long in the Palace, but we have escaped scrutiny so far, and I had hoped to spare you embarrassment by further spurning onlookers, but clearly, you find my attempts at secrecy nothing short of cruel, and so I must apologize."

"Apology _not_ accepted, on the grounds that it was issued in an extremely caustic manner of which I do not approve."  She told him, stomping one slippered foot in annoyance.  "Also, you should additionally apologize for lying to me on repeated occasions, not only by telling me you were busy with other obligations when you were not, but prior to that, your vows of love and devotion were also, clearly, nothing but fabrications."

"Why would you care if they were lies, seeing as you yourself could not find the heart in you to return them?" Kouga shot back, and she blinked at him in surprise.

"You are a very cold lover, you know?" she asked him.

"And you are not?" he returned.  She snorted in irritation and seemed about to leave when she flung herself in his arms instead.

"I missed you." She admitted, burying her face in his chest as he wrapped arms around her and noted that he still could only just feel a jut in her stomach speaking of pregnancy in her physical form, though her emotions spoke volumes alone.  "And yet, you never came to see me.  It was a horrible trick to play, making me need you so much."

"You need me now, do you?" he asked, and she nodded slightly.  "Well, that's a start I suppose.  This is new." He let his hand move to the slight roundness that had not been there the last time they had embraced.

"I hate it." She pouted, and he kissed her until the frown melted away.

"I love it." He countered.  "It is what you wanted from me, and now you have it.  It is proof that we were together.  Though it is a bit sad, knowing there is no reason for us to sleep together ever again now that I have given you your heir."

"That, my dear lord." She told him with a slight smile.  "Is utterly ridiculous.  I am Empress, and if I want to sleep with you, I shall do precisely that."  Kouga did not say anything to that.  There was no need arguing with the Empress, after all.

----------

"Thank you, once again." Kagome smiled breathlessly up at her rescuer as Lord Naraku stalked away from the floor looking very put-out indeed.  "A lady needn't fear the dreaded High Lord when such a gallant Prince is near."

"There is no woman that I could honestly wish him upon.  Other than the Empress Mother, perhaps, but I think they are already a bit closer than siblings should be." Inuyasha told her with a bitter twist of his mouth.

"Surely not!" Kagome would have laughed had the idea not seemed entirely plausible.  "Do you know this for sure?"

"Sesshoumaru speaks of it on occasion.  I do not question whether it is true or not, as I honestly do not want to know." Inuyasha admitted, and she had to smother a bout of scandalized giggles.

"It would explain some things, I am sure." Kagome told him.  "Although it really does not bear thinking about."

"Truly." He seemed to find this to be the end of the conversation, as he then switched topics entirely.  "So then, I take it that my Lady is an only child."

"Indeed I am, and my cousins are all girls.  It is driving my aunts straight to distraction, and they are pushing me to find a suitable husband as fast as I possibly can." She did not know why she spoke so honestly with Inuyasha, but it seemed only right, as he was always perfectly open with her.

"That must not be any fun." Inuyasha seemed rather sympathetic.  "I know my brother and Kagura wanted nothing to do with each other, but they had no choice in the matter.  Even now, they are nothing more than good friends, married only by coincidence."

"But the Empress is pregnant." Kagome corrected him.  "So clearly, behind closed doors…"

"Oh…yes, well clearly."  Inuyasha felt an utter idiot for almost dropping such a closely guarded bit of information even he was not sure of, though Rin swore it was true.  Kouga ka'Ookami the father of the heir to the throne?  Again, it simply did not bear thinking about in Inuyasha's opinion.

"I would love to marry to someone I could be close friends with, as well." Kagome seemed to think that Kagura and Sesshoumaru were now even more of a fairy tale couple, and Inuyasha felt stupid for even bringing it up.  "How about you, Prince Inuyasha?"

"I would marry for love, as I have no other reason to enter a union." He told her.

"Does the prince fancy any noblewoman of the court?" her ears perked up immediately.  "You must tell me!"

"No one…of the court, no." he coughed slightly.  It was not quite a lie.  "Oh…it is dreadfully late, and I will never be able to rise in the morning if I do not retire now." He excused himself swiftly.  "Always a pleasure, my lady."

"My Lord." Kagome curtsied deeply and blushed when he kissed her hand before walking away.  Perhaps it was insane…but she was beginning to formulate a plan.

Kouga ka'Ookami was clearly ignoring her, and she might as well give up on it.  It would take a great man to stand against the High Lord Naraku.  And perhaps, in the Prince Inuyasha, she had found such a man.

"Someone I could be friends with…"

The End (Of Part 18, That Is)


	20. Sinking

I know, I haven't updated in a bit, but bear with me here.  I needed to move and settle in a place that would have me, and I'm still busy looking for a job, so that doesn't leave a ton of time for extras such as writing, now does it?  Anyway, I'm here now, and here is my newest bit.

Gossamer Dreams

Part 19

"Today, a riot ensued after a demonstration in which several radical speakers worked the crowds up to fever pitch." Kagura explained the truth behind the rumors that had been circulating since noon to her brother-in-law and her husband's concubine.  They were all of them sharing a light tea before dinner, and of course, the subject of the arrests that had been made was brought up by Inuyasha.  "In the end, the mob was nothing more than a load of angry students and peasants with nothing better to do.  Several arrests were made, and once that began, the crowd fled.  None of them were very serious, when they thought they might be punished for their actions.  The rioters that were arrested shall be released in one week's time.  No need to make this any more overstated than it already is, clearly."  Her hand rested on the wide curve of her stomach as she spoke, and she drank a very weak tea.  All that she was allowed, it seemed, though she did manage to grimace quite regularly in silent resistance to this edict.

"How many arrests were made?" Rin asked, always interested in the outside world she had once been a part of.

"Nineteen." Kagura answered, setting down her half-empty cup and sighing slightly.  "Of course, Sesshoumaru and I were not notified of the situation until they were already well on their way to the dungeons, but no matter.  We feel that if the prisoners are treated merely as misbehaving children, it will help to diffuse the situation at once."

"It is not as if we are not aware of the unrest amongst the populace." Sesshoumaru added at that point.  "But we can only fix my mother's meddlings so quickly.  And how are we to know exactly which bits are considered most important to the commonwealth when they do not see fit to petition us directly, but instead stew within themselves until such explosions as this one take place?"

"You must know that your mother sent any commoner who brought complaints to her straight to the dungeons, if not the gallows." Rin reminded him.  "It is no wonder they do not approach you for redress.  The whole country still believes you are but a pretty pawn, controlled by your mother's master manipulations."

"What do you suggest, then?" Kagura asked, interested in Rin's thoughts as always.  After all, she was the closest they had to an honest commoner who could truly tell them what it was to live in Fukumaden under their reign.

"When the child is born, there shall no doubt be a great celebration." Rin began as though she had been thinking on this problem for some time already.  "At that time when the child is to be presented to its subjects, you should address your people, Sesshoumaru.  Tell them that you honestly hope to solve any division between you and them.  Entreat them to approach you with their pleas for redress and their complaints.  Show that you are honest and sincere, and all shall be well, I am sure.  This is the first step."

"If only Kijo knew you took your political advice from a Gifted girl." Inuyasha smiled, but it was not mocking, and Rin returned the grin, also seeing the great humor in the situation.  "Do you think that will stop the resistance we have seen lately?"

"It will take some time, I am sure." She nodded slightly, "But I am confident we will not fail to mend this country between all of our efforts.  Now, if you will all excuse us, I had intended to get a bit of private time with the emperor before I returned to the Chamber."

"Of course, dear Rin, do not let us stand in your way." Kagura's smile was broad and wicked, and she let Inuyasha help her up to exit the room as Rin and Sesshoumaru walked in the opposite direction to his own private chambers.  Rin was sure she could guess what Kagura and Inuyasha must think of her request, but it was true that she needed to see the emperor alone.  It was really quite important.

"I must request something, dear Sesshoumaru." She told him as soon as they were alone.  "You must install me in your own chambers at once so that I might not be accessible to those who would take advantage of me.  I know it is most irregular…"

"It sounds like a wonderful idea." Sesshoumaru interrupted.  "I would rather know where you are at all times than risk having Naraku spot you, even if I have named you my official mistress.  I simply do not want him near you."

"Good." She smiled warmly and turned to him, her hands clutching at her skirts.  "Because I am pregnant."

----------

"You know, my Lord," Kagome gave Inuyasha one of her most winning smiles.  "My birthday is only tomorrow."

"Is it, then?" he seemed rather struck by this news.  "Odd.  My friend shares your birthday, as well it seems."

"Continually curious, this friend of yours with whom I share so much." Kagome tried not to be annoyed.  "I really must meet her."

"No, I do not think you would get on well…" Inuyasha trailed off slightly.  "And she is…busy."

"Are you sure you could not arrange for us to meet?  Perhaps tomorrow?" Kagome pressed.  She must know who her competition was, after all.  "If we share so very much, we would surely have something to speak about."

"I do not…" Inuyasha's face seemed strained, as though he were fighting some internal battle.  "Perhaps…just once, then.  I could take you to meet her now, if it is your wish.  It could be your birthday present, as I've got nothing else I can think of that you would want."

"Haven't you?" Kagome attempted, but Inuyasha was as predictably dense about her attempts at flirtation as ever.  It was all very frustrating.  At this rate, the Imperial child would be married before she was.  "Very well, let us make haste to see her.  She is not a noble, then?"

"Not…so much." Inuyasha's neck twitched slightly, and Kagome frowned as he offered her his arm and led her out of the busy dining hall and into the nearly empty corridors outside.  They moved at a casual pace, but she was sure she had never before seen this part of the Palace, and she had to try her best not to let her head whip round at the tapestries and statues like a Maiden on her first day.  She would never impress him if she acted a child.  "You must be civil with her, as she is much more proper in her speech manners than I am, and she takes great offense to frivolity.  Only I am allowed…"

"What is her name, dear Prince?" Kagome pressed.  She sounded like less of a temptress the more she heard.  Surely, he could not be so very attached to whichever servant it was that she was about to be introduced to.  Mostly just familiar, she was sure.

"Kikyo." He answered simply, his tone not brooking a request of surname, and so Kagome followed him as he pulled aside a tapestry she was sure she would not be able to find again on her own and opened a secret door, showing her up a staircase that was clearly not spoken of amongst proper society, unless…she remembered whispered rumors of a Chamber in this castle visited only by men, and full entirely with…but that could surely not be… "Here we are." He opened the door at the top of the stairs and guided her in past scores of purple-eyed beauties in various states of undress, all of them glaring quite openly at the prince and his guest as they made their way to a certain niche, where one girl sat alone, reading to herself from an enormous tome.  "Kikyo." He repeated the name, and she looked up immediately, hope and something deeper in her violet orbs before they hardened at the sight of Kagome.  The young Maiden thought it might be silly, but in that first moment of seeing her face, Kikyo _did_ seem to bear a remarkable resemblance to herself.  But that was ridiculous.  A noble daughter, looking like a poorly restrained Gifted whore?

"What is this?" she asked, not half as polite as Inuyasha had built her up to be.  "I was waiting for you, and you bring another woman to me?  Who is she?"

"Kikyo, please do not be angry.  This is the lady Kagome ka'Neko, Maiden to the Empress, and she shares a common problem with you." He told her, his voice soft and urgent.  He clearly feared her displeasure, though Kagome could not understand why.  She was clearly Gifted.

"Does she?" Kikyo's eyes sparked at this, and Inuyasha immediately dropped Kagome's arm as if the appendage had scorched him.  "And what problem might that be?"

"Naraku." He said the name as if he were speaking of something unspeakably disgusting, which Kagome frankly felt he was.  But she was still trapped on the idea that all this time, this "friend" of Inuyasha's was a Gifted whore locked away in a secret room.

"Oh." Her voice was immediately softer, and she rose smoothly, giving Kagome a deep curtsy.  "I apologize, then.  I am pleased to meet you, Lady ka'Neko."

"Kagome, this is—" Inuyasha began, but she cut him off before he could finish saying whatever it was he had been about to say.

"You mean to tell me…all this time, I worried what lady I might have to compete with for your affections, and instead of a lady, I find that you've been dallying with this…beast?" Kagome's lip was curled in disgust at the idea of Inuyasha doing anything at all with a Gifted girl.  "You tell me we are alike, but how so?  Am I something terrible, to be locked away?  Do you wish me to be your mistress then?  I doubt you are fit to lay with, after having this…this…beast in your sheets."

"Kagome!" Inuyasha looked shocked and angry, but that was nothing to the unbridled, murderous rage on Kikyo's porcelain face.  Inuyasha made a noise like a frog being stepped on and hurriedly ushered Kagome all the way back out of the Chambers, to the landing of the secret staircase, where he finally spoke to her again.  "Kagome…I think you are a good person, and I understand that many of your kind have been taught to hate and revile the Gifted, but they are not so _different_ from us!  They are just people, like we are just people.  Behind the powers half of us cannot use and the claws and everything else, we are all just people, and it is very important that you learn that.  I want you to know that I am your friend, and that even when I seem to be hidden from view, I will watch out for you.  All I ask is that you never speak so horribly of a Gifted again.  That girl you just met is my best friend, and I love her—"

"How can you even—"

"Listen to me!" Inuyasha cut off her interjection with a shake of her shoulders.  "I love her, and she is not my mistress.  We have not even kissed, to be honest, and yet, I know that she is the only woman I will ever truly love.  If all of our time speaking to each other and becoming friends has meant anything to you, you will respect that.  Please, it pains me to hear your kind speak so foully of the Gifted, but from one whose opinion I have grown to value, the pain grows ever more terrible.  Tell me…"

"What do you mean…my kind?" Kagome felt a strange twist in her stomach.

"My mother was Gifted, Kagome." He told her solemnly, and she felt the air leave her lungs.  "I am just as much like Kikyo as I am like you, and so when you speak ill of the Gifted, you are speaking of me as well."

"But…you are the Prince!" she was absolutely boggled.  "How?"

"Not everything that goes on in the Palace is as it seems, Kagome." He sighed deeply.  "Just tell me, promise you will look upon Gifted more kindly.  If only for my sake…"

It seemed a trifling thing to promise.  And how could he know if she truly viewed Gifted as something better after she spoke the words?  It seemed only too easy to win some of his affection for herself by answering quickly.  "I swear it."

"Thank you, Kagome." He smiled so warmly, she forgot to breathe as he escorted her back out of the staircase and walked her silently to her room.  And that was when Kagome realized that now, once she had sworn herself, she had no choice but to honestly follow her word to whatever end it may lead her.  Her aunts would be most displeased.  But then, at her door, Inuyasha paused, and finally placed the lightest of kisses on her cheek, smiling bashfully as he pulled away.  "Goodbye, dear lady."

"Goodnight…" she corrected him absently, but he was already gone.

----------

"I returned as quickly as possible." Inuyasha breathed apologetically as Kikyo moved stiffly, lifting a bundle of clothing and books with some difficulty and looping it over her arm.  "Here, let me take that."

"I have it, do not bother yourself." She hissed.  "If you speak loudly, we will be heard, and then what?"

"You are still angry, aren't you?" he pouted, even though she could hardly see the way his lip jutted out in the darkness of the Chambers at one in the morning.  "Please, I had to pack my own things and make the last arrangements…"

"It is not about that, Inuyasha." Kikyo told him, urging him toward the staircase.  "It was that girl.  Why did you bring her before?"

"She has been asking to meet you for months." Inuyasha explained softly as they edged out onto the landing and closed the door quietly behind them.  "I thought…this was really her last chance.  It is her birthday as well, you know.  I thought it might be nice to give her that.  She is a good person, beneath the biases placed on her, Kikyo.  I swear she is."

"I do not wish to hear any more about it, please." Kikyo spoke delicately in the tone that Inuyasha recognized as quiet fury.  "Let us just be done with all of this."  Her tone changed then as she turned on him at the bottom of the stairs, his hand on the door handle, her hand moving to his shoulder and a soft smile lighting her features.  "I love you, Inuyasha."

"And I you," he felt a surge of happy relief.  "Forever and only you."

"Do not lavish me in vows you cannot keep, dear Prince." She teased him as the moved softly down the corridors.  "What if something happened to me and you were left alone for years and years?  Would you not learn to love again?"

"Would you want me to?" he asked, his voice serious.  She paused and turned back to him, realizing only then that they had been holding hands since they emerged from behind the tapestry.

"Yes." She told him honestly.  "I could not bear knowing I had left you to a life of miserable solitude."  There was a moment of silence between them.  They both understood the seriousness of this conversation, and surely they knew that especially in the current situation, the death of one or the other would be all too likely.  Kikyo understood that unquestionably, but Inuyasha still hoped that they would have a fairy tale of their own.

"Does Rin know?" he asked her finally as they began moving again.  She shook her head swiftly.

"I knew she would not go with us, and I would hate her to be in trouble on my account." Another pause in the whispered conversation.  "She is pregnant, you know."  Inuyasha made a noise like he was choking on a mouthful of live fish.

"Sesshoumaru?" was all he said when he regained his ability to speak, and she nodded swiftly.  They did not speak again until they had reached the corridor leading to the front gates.  "We must be careful.  If we are swift, it should be the matter of a moment slipping past as they switch guards.  It should happen any moment now."

"I am ready." She told him, and then, because the gravity of the situation struck her and because the excitement of it all struck him, they kissed lightly, briefly, and their grip on each others' hands tightened as they exchanged a nod.  They waited.  They listened.  And then, they flew from the Palace as swiftly as their feet would carry them, with little more to their names than some clothing and books and as much gold as Inuyasha had been able to carry and still feel he could move stealthily about.  Soon enough, they were past the courtyard and the gates and the wrought iron fencing and the hedges and making their way through streets neither one had ever walked before, excepting in their minds, guided by the detailed maps and instructions milked, through time, from one very unsuspecting Rin.

"I've no idea where we are." Inuyasha told her eventually, and she stopped, pulling him into an alleyway where she handed him her bundle and extracted a large piece of crumpled paper from within the folds of her skirts.  Unfolding it deftly, she traced a path on the map with a finger guided by the dim streetlamps.

"This is where we are." She finally paused the progress of her finger.  "We will continue across the river, down this street, and then turn onto this, and then, we are here." She pointed firmly to a little square that was labeled with a small star.  "We should be there in an hour, at the most.  Be patient."

"Will he be there?" Inuyasha asked as they continued down the path she had memorized mentally.  "Will he take us in?"

"Of course." She waved away his doubts.  "He is my brother, after all."

The End (Of Part 19, That Is)


	21. Floating

Woo, middle of the night is a _perfect_ time to start working on that update, Teresa.  Good job there.

Gossamer Dreams

Part 20

The Palace was abuzz with news, and though every story one heard was different from the last, one thing was clearly agreed upon by all.

The Crown Prince Inuyasha was missing.

No one was clear on when he had gone, or if he had been taken, or if he was perhaps still in the castle, hidden in some secret passage only he knew about, or if he had been killed and dumped in the river, perhaps.  The stories were almost all different.  One spoke of an assassination plotted by none other than the Emperor himself to get his brother out of the way for the heir soon to be born, so that the baby would be the very next in line to the succession.  Another story told of a kidnapping by a group of humans desperate to get the Youkai's attention, hoping to use the Prince as a hostage.  Some said that he had run off with a sweetheart in the middle of the night to elope and would be back in only a week or so.  Yet others said that he had come off worse in a fight with another noble and was too ashamed to show his face.

One thing that very few people in the castle knew was that the Prince Inuyasha was not the only soul to be reported missing that morning.  Another, a Gifted girl from the Apartment, was gone without a trace.  Her sparse belongings were also gone, leading one to think that her departure had been premeditated, but even so, this disappearance was less noteworthy.  After all, what was a worthless concubine who clearly only wanted to escape her dismal future next to a young man with the whole kingdom as his future?  And so, even those that knew both were missing did not often make the connection between them.  A very few, however, _did_ know of both, and in fact, made the connection that perhaps they had _both_ decided to start their lives anew.  Amongst these enlightened few were the Emperor, his concubine, the Empress, the Empress Mother, and the High Lord Naraku.

And so, while all the Palace was teeming with gossip and speculation, Sesshoumaru called for his most trusted supporter, the young Lord Shippo ka'Kitsune, whose father had been his father's greatest supporter, and so, they had grown up together.  Shippo was not only a highly privileged noble, he was also a singularly talented individual, who, like his father before him, had determined in his youth to uncover and sharpen his birthrights, and therefore had unique magical powers.  This made Shippo an incredible asset, and at a time like this, Sesshoumaru could think of no one more suited for the job intended.

"I want you to look for him, Shippo." Sesshoumaru spoke as he sat with his clearly distraught, very pregnant wife on one side, and his only slightly pregnant but certainly just as concerned concubine on his other side.  "He will be with the girl I have described, and I do not think they will want to linger, but as my mother called for the guards to watch out for both of them, I also believe they might be trapped in Yuurei for the moment.  I believe my mother may intend to have him killed."  Rin made a sharp noise of shock, and Kagura squeezed her teacup so hard it nearly broke.  "This would be the best opportunity for her to have him taken care of, and I know already that she plots to kill Kagura and I once our own child is born.  Obviously, Naraku and her wish to take back the country for themselves, but I will not give it t them.  We are depending on you to see to this, Shippo."

"Yes, Majesty." Shippo bowed very low, gave slight flourishes of the cape he wore because he thought it very dashing to both ladies present and then turned to leave before pausing.  "My Lord, will you be safe here without me?"

"Yes, Jaken brings us every bit of news that my mother lets slip, so we are very well informed." Sesshoumaru waved a hand dismissively as if his own safety and the safety of his wife and the heir were of secondary concern to the welfare of his missing brother.  "Please, do leave with all secrecy and haste."

"I will." Shippo bowed once more before making a broad sweep of his cape and turning out of the room quickly.  He would not fail his master.  He had the power of illusions on his side, and very few could claim that advantage.  Besides that, he was almost positive who his adversary would be if an assassin was hired, and he felt confident that he could take the Taijiya family members on with reasonable success.  He could certainly befuddle them and then escape.  That would be all he needed.

He would make his father proud.  He would protect his Emperor.  He would protect the Prince.

He was Shippo ka'Kitsune, noble leader of the ka'Kitsune house, master swordsman, accomplished rider, and master of illusionary magic.

----------

"Well then, would you like some tea?" Miroku asked his new houseguest when she woke up and made her way to the main room in the little house that morning.  "You were rather too tired for talking and tea last night, so I simply put you in your room and let you and your beau be, but now that you seem to be rested, I could do with a bit of an explanation." A long unused smile was threatening to break over lips that had forgotten the feeling of happiness.  He had not slept at all the night before.  Well, that is to say, he had slept before the door had woken him in the very unwelcome hours of the night, but after he had stumbled to see if it was a fugitive or a cry for his Healing, he had not slept another wink.  His sister, Kikyo, back at last, when he had thought her dead.

"Rin is well." Was the first thing she said after his question, and he nearly dropped the teakettle.  "She was with me, there, at the Palace."

"You were at the Palace?" Miroku looked rather more than interested.  "And she is still there."

"Well, I could not take her, I was sure.  Once she told me she was pregnant, there was nothing for it." Kikyo shrugged and accepted the cup that Miroku managed to hand her with relative calm at these revelations.  "I could not hope to drag her away from her beloved Sesshoumaru."

"Her…and she's…well then." Miroku poured his own tea and sat next to her.  "Am I right to assume that we are speaking of the same Rin?"

"Yes, and I am sure we are thinking of the same Sesshoumaru as well.  Everyone knows the Emperor's name is very rare." Kikyo told him calmly.

"You…were you prisoners?" he asked, choking a bit on his tea.  "But…pregnant with the…"

"Yes, yes, we were prisoners." Kikyo waved her hand slightly as though she found explaining rather a chore.  "You see, when Gifted are captured, they are taken to the lower dungeons, and then, if they are pretty girls of around my age, or even younger, they are chosen to live in the Apartment, and we are all to be concubines to the noble Youkai.  That is why I had to leave, you see.  When they caught me, I had lied about my age, and they think that today is my thirteenth birthday.  Once a girl is of that age, she is old enough to be taken by the nobles, and so I had to escape before I could be had.  And, you see, Inuyasha and I are in love, and so we thought…"

"Wait!" Miroku had choked yet again.  "That young man with you…is the Crown Prince?  And you two are eloping so that you can escape your fate as a Youkai concubine?"

"Yes, that is about the gist of the situation." Kikyo nodded slightly.  "And Rin, of course.  She came straight to the Apartment, and Sesshoumaru took an immediate liking to her, in a strictly friendly way at first.  You see, Inuyasha promised me to help take care of her, so he would take her to visit the Emperor and Empress so that she could be away from those who might like to take her.  But then Sesshoumaru took an interest, and she felt the same for him, and now she is his concubine, and she is pregnant with his child as well.  I think that sums up everything of interest to you, brother."

"It is a very fantastical story you weave, Kikyo." Miroku sipped his tea thoughtfully.  "Why not tell me of your escape?"

"Well that is not very exciting, truly.  I knew the way here because I have long since had Rin draw me a map of the city from her memory, and while she was not positive about every section, she was quite clear on where your house was, and so it was no trouble to follow the way here.  We left in the deep cover of night, easily enough, as men and their ladies are always coming and going.  No one thought to check who was in the carriage or where they were going, as they were leaving the Palace for the night.  I think the only thing of any note was that before we could make our escape, Inuyasha brought a young noble woman he had befriended to meet me.  She was horribly rude and utterly bigoted against me, but then, I have grown rather used to that sort of treatment.  She was, however, very pretty, but oddly enough…Inuyasha told me that what he first noticed about her was her resemblance to my own person.  It is strange, but she does look much like I might if I were only Youkai instead of Gifted.  Odd, is it not, brother?"

"Ah…yes." He coughed and seemed to be debating something before he turned on her sharply.  "Was her name Kagome ka'Neko?"

"How…did you know that?" Kikyo blinked slightly.  "Is she a former patient of yours?"

"No, not that I had not wished…never mind." Miroku shook his head sharply.  "Kikyo, you are fifteen years old.  It is long since time that I told you everything.  And now that you are here…"

"What do you mean, brother?" Kikyo asked him, utterly confused.

"First off, I am not…that is to say, we are not related by blood." He told her, looking rather disappointed at having to disclose this.  Kikyo let out a sharp noise, and he continued.  "I knew this, but I have always loved you like a sister, and so I hoped when you were younger…but I realize the truth is something rare and important, so I must be frank.  We met first on the night that you were born, on the very same night that your mother died.  Her name was Mikomi sei'Junjou, as you have always known.  However, she was not my mother.  My own mother died years before you were born, and my father abandoned me here on the night you were born.  He was a human named Keisotsu.  Your father, however, was a Youkai noble by the name of Musouka ka'Neko, and you should also know that the young noble lady Kagome ka'Neko is none other than your twin sister."  Kikyo had gone utterly pale, and Miroku feared that she would faint.  However, she gradually recovered, moving her mouth as though gasping for breath or trying to speak but failing miserably.  Finally, she managed to speak.

"My…sister?"

"Yes, exactly so." Miroku set down his cup.  "Was she looking well, then?"

"Why…were we…" Kikyo was unable to finish, but Miroku understood what she meant, and so he answered her question.

"When you were born, as you can see now, you carried all the signs of a Gifted, while Kagome carried all the signs of a Youkai.  Therefore, it seemed wisest to send Kagome to live a comfortable life with your father's family.  While you could not live with them, certainly, Kaede adopted your care as her responsibility.  It was something that I did not know the full truth of until the day she died.  She told me the complete story, and then made me promise I would tell you only if I thought you were ready.  When you were taken, all those years ago, I thought for sure that you would die without ever knowing the truth, and I felt horrible for never telling you all of it.  And so I swore that if we were ever, by some miracle, reunited, I would share all of it with you.  And so." He stood, taking his cup to the sink and lifting the teakettle to offer her more tea, which she waved away distractedly as she attempted to digest this information.

"That…is a lot to learn in a very little amount of time." She told him after a moment.

"Take your time, Kikyo." He smiled at her warmly.  "You may stay here for as long as you and your prince wish.  My home is ever and always your home."

"Thank you."

The End (Of Part 20, That Is)


	22. Illumination

Look, I'm updating!  I swear, it's not a trick!

Gossamer Dreams

Part 21

"Miroku, I must speak with you." Kikyo told him as a silent meal filled with tension drew to a close.  Inuyasha, who looked as though he could not wait to be away, positively fled the room back to stay in wait in the small bedroom he had slept in the night before.  He clearly had no idea as to what was causing such a strained atmosphere between the two siblings, but he wrote it off as the perfectly understandable growing apart two souls might do when separated for such a very great time.  Knowing how deeply Kikyo had cared for her brother before, Inuyasha had no doubt that relations would smooth themselves out presently.  However, if Kikyo was in a foul mood, he wanted nothing to do with it.

"I take it that you have been occupied by our earlier conversation." Miroku folded his napkin as though it were a rather involving chore, devoting his entire gaze and seemingly the bulk of his attention to this one important thing.

"Of course.  And I have reached a decision on the matter." Kikyo stood and paced slightly, flexing her fingers against each other, a nervous habit she had retained from her childhood, and one that very few people ever had the privilege of witnessing.  "You were present at my birth, and you knew my mother."

"Only briefly." Miroku interjected.  "She was a kind woman."

"Still, you knew her better than I did, and does that make me less her daughter?" Kikyo asked, not pausing to wait for an answer.  "You know more of my life than I did a day ago, and while you were not related to me by birth, you have always cared for me.  Even when I turn up on your doorstep in the dead of night, you do not question what fate brought me there or turn me aside, you welcome me with open arms.  In my opinion, that is what a family is.  Kaede was not my mother, nor my auntie or any of the rest, but she was still my family.  And you, Miroku, will always be my brother.  I love you and know you much better than I do my true sibling, and so…how could I deny you?" she smiled slightly at him then, but he could see that she was not done with her exposition.

"And you will always be my sister, dearest Kikyo." He assured her.

"As per the other bit of it…the business of my sister." Kikyo bit her lip and looked at him, her purple eyes swirling with calculations and emotions too numerous to grasp.  "I must admit that I disliked the spoiled noblewoman I met last night from the moment Inuyasha brought her to me.  But now…knowing the true nature of things, I have to wonder.  Do you think that it is not our own innate goodness that makes us into the people we present to the world, but instead a mixture of our own thoughts heavily influenced by our environments and situations?  I have come to think that perhaps, if I had been raised in her stead, I might not have turned out so very different from Kagome ka'Neko."

"That is a very wise supposition, Kikyo." Miroku nodded his head slightly.  "Do you think that you would like to meet her again?  Perhaps to attempt to find the bit of her that makes you sisters?"

"I would like that." Kikyo admitted.  "But at the same time, it makes me wonder.  Imagine that inside, Kagome and I are made of the very same stuff.  We begin from the same spot.  I am sure it is not so simple as all that, but please, indulge me.  In this case, one would say that Inuyasha, who loves me, should also be able to love Kagome rather easily.  However, one would think that when made to choose, he would turn to the easier option, the accepted noblewoman, the high marriage, the noble children they might produce together.  Instead, he chose to run off with an outcast.  Why do you think this is?"

"I think you have answered your own question, Kikyo." Miroku told her thoughtfully.  "It is not as simple as all that.  Love never is."

"Brother, you speak as though you know much of love." Kikyo smiled suddenly, her fears about all of this apparently allayed.  "Tell me, then.  Have there been any affairs you've indulged in since I've been gone?  What, with the house so empty, it must be an unbearable temptation."

"Oh, I am constantly surrounded in admirers." Miroku's grin was much larger than Kikyo's, and just as wonderful as she remembered, though a bit more tired and a bit sadder than the last time she saw it.  "As you might guess, with my position as the most eligible professor at the University, the young women think I'm quite a catch.  Of course, I cannot help but disappoint them time and time again."

"Why is that?  Have you only one great love?  When might I meet her?" Kikyo watched as her brother's smile faded and became a sad satire of the expression he had shown her only a moment ago.

"No, rather, I have decided to keep my love to myself." He told her, his voice soft.  "Think of it, Kikyo.  My mother died, my father left me, Kaede also died, Kagome was taken away, you were taken, as was Rin.  Everyone I have ever loved has been taken from me.  I think that is the true tragedy of our fate.  Being Gifted in Fukumaden, it is as if the very spirits surrounding us are angry at our existence.  They begrudge our every tiny happiness.  I hope the best to you and your prince, Kikyo, but as for me…I've given up on being heartbroken."

"Miroku, that is a horrible thing to say!" Kikyo sounded utterly aghast.  "Of course it sounds like some universal curse if you put it like that, but there _was_ happiness, for both of us, and for many others like us, despite our fate.  Besides all that, did I not return to you?  Did I not tell you that Rin is happy and in love?  Does that not arouse doubt against your grand theory?"

"Kikyo, you are very young still." Miroku told her in a tone that made it clear that this was the end of that conversation, crumpling his napkin and standing, pushing his chair in and walking toward the door.  "I must go out for a bit.  Will you be quite alright by yourself?"

"I am not so much younger than you, Miroku." She told him while busying herself helping him into his cloak.  "Be careful."

"Of you?" he asked with a slight smile, and she had to laugh then, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Off with you now." She mock shoved him toward the door.  "And I will see you when you return."

"I might be late." He warned.  "Could you clear the dishes?"

"I will do one better.  They will all be clean and dry when you return.  Now don't worry for me, I am not about to be swept up again like a child.  I have my wits quite about me." She assured him, already moving to clear the remains of the meal from the table.  "And I have Inuyasha here with me.  We'll be just fine."

"Until later, then." He waved and opened the door, stepping out as she turned to be sure he was leaving.  She continued clearing the dishes until, as she had silently predicted, Inuyasha crept down the hallway and entered the main room, looking rather unsure of himself.

"Well then, come and help me if you like, or you can just go back to the room." She told him with a slight smile.  This was really the first moment of solitude she had shared with Inuyasha since they had reached Miroku's door.  She felt unsure of what to do, so she had babbled rather than sounded anything approaching assured.

"I do not know how that's done." He nodded to where she was scrubbing a plate as if by second nature.  "Can I just sit out here with you?"

"Yes." She answered after a moment.  "That would be lovely."

----------

"What are we waiting for?  The target is alone." A young boy in an armored bodysuit whispered to his older companion, who was clearly a young woman, even though most of her face was covered by an armored mask which matched his.  "Shouldn't we strike now?"

"You forget, we are supposed to eliminate the girl as well." The young woman told her companion, patting his back slightly in a warm gesture which seemed disconnected from the situation, both of them perched in a cherry tree, silently watching a tiny house and its three inhabitants, the woman fingering the handle of a sword strapped to her waist, her companion clutching a chain and sickle with a grim determination one would never expect from someone so clearly too young to be suspected of violent capabilities.  "We need for the Healer to leave.  He isn't a part of this, and I'd rather not make a mess of things killing spares."

"But they're fugitives and he's housing them!" the boy hissed.  "That's his own fault if he drags himself into something like this.  Healers aren't supposed to grant sanctuary to those that are out of bounds."

"We're hardly law officials, Kohaku." She spoke in a tone that was clearly a bit annoyed.  "Our job is to complete the contract.  Outsiders are not our concern."

"Then his safety doesn't matter." Kohaku countered.

"We are assassins, not killers." She told him sharply.  "There's a difference."

"Sorry, Sango." He seemed rather chastised, and fell silent as they continued watching the scene below them unfold.  "Do you think we'll get a bonus for finding them so quickly?"

"They weren't as clever as us, that's all there is to it." Sango shrugged slightly.  "This city has eyes, you just have to know which ones are honest, and which ones need persuading."

"When I grow up, do you think I'll be as good as you, Sango?" he asked her after another pause.

"Not if you can't be quiet."  She told him.  "That is part of our job, as well."

"Right, sorry." And he fell silent again, not even speaking when one of the house's occupants left, only turning bright maroon eyes to his companion in anticipation of her order.  She did not speak until the remaining young man in the house joined the woman in the kitchen.  Then she nodded and turned to him.

"I'll take the girl, then." She told him, knowing he still had difficulty killing women, but kind enough to make it sound as though she were giving him the more difficult target.  "Unless you're afraid of the puppy prince?"

"Hardly." He shifted his sickle so he could prepare to leap.  "I'll take that window there, come in from behind."

"Good, I'll swing through the front and drop a smoke bomb.  They won't know what's hit them until it's too late." She reached out and squeezed the boy's shoulder.  "Ready?"

"Ready."

"Go."

----------

"There isn't any sort of trouble, is there?" Inuyasha spoke up as Kikyo worked on the last pot, washing it in no particular hurry.

"How do you mean?" she asked, looking up and pausing in her task.

"I was wondering if your brother is as pleased to see you as you expected." Inuyasha shrugged slightly.  "We will be searched for, you realize."

"I do."  She smiled at him then, serenely.  "And no, there is no trouble.  We were just in the middle of a discussion.  One we should have had a long time ago."

"Everything is fine, then?" he asked, but before any answer could be given, there was the sound of two windows shattering, followed by a hiss and a rush of air as a thick, noxious smoke filled the room.  It was as if the peaceful moment had been shattered as messily and quickly as the windows that had just been smashed in.  That scream had to be Kikyo, but Inuyasha could not possibly see to reach her.  He was trapped, somehow, something had wrapped itself around his arms, which wanted nothing more than to thrash and escape and  push past the restraint so that he could reach her.  And there was yelling, thuds, a woman crying out.  Was that Kikyo?  Had someone struck her?  And for some unexplicable reason, the room was suddenly not only filled with smoke, but completely dark, as if all the lamps had gone out at once.

"Kikyo!" That was certainly not his own voice.  "Are you alright?"

"Inuyasha?" the voice was recognizable as Kikyo's own, and while she sounded frightened, she did not sound as though she was dying or horribly hurt.  "Who is _holding_ me!"

"I am here to protect you, my lady, please." A strained voice spoke up.  "Do stop kicking me."

"Kick him, Kikyo!" The voice was finally recognizable as Miroku, and Inuyasha wondered when he had come back.  "I heard you out there, you know.  You aren't as silent as you could have hoped."

"Miroku?" Kikyo's voice spoke up again.  "Where's Inuyasha?"

"I'm here." He spoke up.  "Someone's holding me."

"Hold still, then." The voice of his captor sounded so young Inuyasha felt insulted that he was having such trouble escaping.  "I've got the prince."

"Kill him then." A woman's voice that Inuyasha did not recognize spoke up.

"Do it, and I will be forced to kill your partner." Miroku's voice was utterly calm.

"Sango?!" his captor suddenly sounded much less sure of himself.  "Are you alright?"

"Just do it, Kohaku.  This Healer wouldn't hurt me." The woman sounded a bit more scared than her words would lead one to believe.  "Don't you remember him?  He once healed me, after my very first mission with father.  I remember his face."

"_That_ Healer?  The one that killed Shinju?" a blade was suddenly firmly placed against Inuyasha's throat, and he felt himself wishing he knew what was going on.

"Sango?" Miroku's voice was genuinely surprised.  "You've…grown up a bit."

"Do _not_ touch that!" Sango's voice was full of rage.  "Kohaku, kill the boy.  I'm fine."

"Shouldn't we kill the Healer too?" Kohaku asked, sounding rather innocent for someone asking such a horrible question.

"He didn't kill Shinju, let it go, Kohaku." Sango sounded utterly exasperated.

"Kohaku's here too, then?  Old enough for missions by now, I suppose." Miroku seemed to be having a casual conversation with old friends.

"What is going on here?" Kikyo spoke Inuyasha's thoughts perfectly.  "Is this an assassination or a tea party?"

"Bit dark for a tea party, my lady." The young man who had trapped Kikyo spoke up again.

"And who are _you_?" she went on.  "Who sent you?"

"Sesshoumaru." Was the answer.  "I am the Illusionist."

"What kind of name is that?" Kikyo wanted to know.

"_You_!" Apparently it meant something to Inuyasha.  "Kikyo, it's alright, you can trust him.  He's a friend."

"Are you sure?" she sounded rather hesitant about the whole thing, but her captor was already loosening his grip a bit.

"Yes, I know him myself." Inuyasha spoke, and Kikyo finally relaxed enough that the young man let go of her.

"Now, for a little light." He spoke dramatically, and then muttered something, causing the whole room to light up with an eerie bluish light coming from what looked like a ball of fire in his hand, illuminating a slightly apologetic face.  "I put it out in the first place, anyway.  Sorry about that."

"Who _are_ you?" Sango, who was now clearly visible in the blue light, struggling slightly in Miroku's firm hold repeated Kikyo's question.  "The Emperor sent you, did he?"

"I was sent to protect the prince and his lady." The young man answered, walking over to the fireplace and lowering his blue flame, which somehow caught the wood and soon illuminated the room in utterly ordinary firelight as he moved to relight the lamps.  "I am Shippo ka'Kitsune, lord of the ka'Kitsune house, most trusted servant of the great Emperor Sesshoumaru, and you two are my prisoners." He pointed rather casually from Sango to Kohaku, who still seemed to be deciding whether he should kill the prince he was holding or not.  "First of all, put that down.  It's rather sharp." He tossed something small at Kohaku's head and it burst with heat and light, knocking the boy out before he knew what was happening.  He crumpled into a heap, and Inuyasha got his first good look at the boy.  The prince scowled in such disgust at being trapped by someone who was clearly more than a foot shorter than him that he looked as though he might never forgive himself for the incident.

"Kohaku!" Sango now did something like a flip, pulling herself out of Miroku's grip and slamming him to the ground while landing her near the fallen boy just before Shippo released another of his little projectiles and laid her flat as well.

"They will be fine." He swept out his cape as though it had been crumpled irreparably by this ordeal, and then turned to Miroku.  "This is your house then?  I thank you for taking in the prince and his lady." He accompanied this statement with a grand bow, featuring several complicated flourishes of his cape, which Kikyo was deciding was utterly silly.

"Of…course." Miroku looked down at the two Taijiya on his kitchen floor in slight concern.  "They broke my windows.  Do you think there's glass right where they are laying?"

"We can move them right now, of course." Shippo made another slight bow before scooping up Sango smoothly, leaving Kohaku to Miroku.  "You will have to keep them here, I fear, until I can find a more suitable place to keep them."

"Keep them?" Miroku almost dropped Kohaku as they moved them to a bare area in front of the fireplace and laid them on the ground.  "A pair of Taijiya assassins?"

"If they leave, they will come back with stronger forces.  It is unavoidable." Shippo shrugged lightly.  "Although…it would be best to separate them…I think I could sneak one of them out to my estate tonight, if you could watch the other for…a week or so.  Then I could come back and take the other."

"I will keep Sango, then." Miroku spoke after a moment.

"I must protest, the woman is clearly the stronger fighter.  You would be in great danger with her." Shippo shook his head.  "I will take her with me, and return for the boy."

"I restrained her well enough tonight.  I can do it again, I assure you." Miroku stood firm, and after a moment, Shippo shrugged.

"If that is as you wish, Healer.  I have no time to argue, as I must escort these two to a secure location tonight, and the dawn approaches swiftly." He told the other man.  "I was only concerned for your safety."

"Where are we going?" Inuyasha wanted to know.

"It is better that I do not say just yet.  There might be listeners…" Shippo drifted off, dramatically tilting his head to one side as though trying to hear anyone else that might be nearby.  "Just know that you will be safe while I am with you, and once we arrive, the area should be secure."

"Lord ka'Kitsune, please take care of these people.  Their welfare is of great consequence to me." Miroku spoke seriously to the young man, who was now picking up Kohaku and preparing to leave.  Somehow, even with his burden, he managed another bow before he waved a beckoning hand at Inuyasha and Kikyo.

"Now is the time for farewell, as we must be off." He advised them, leaving the house to stand just outside waiting for them to join him.

"That was rather a shorter stay than I had hoped for." Kikyo smiled nervously at Miroku, who laughed roughly and gave her a tight hug.

"I am just glad you were not hurt, Kikyo." He told her, his voice harsh with emotion.  "I hope I will see you again soon.  I shall be lonely here without you to keep me company."

"We will be together soon, I am sure." Miroku assured her, pressing a kiss to her forehead.  "Take care of your prince."

"I will." She assured him before rushing into the back room to recover the bundles Inuyasha and her had still not opened since they arrived.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Prince Inuyasha." Miroku gave the young man a slight bow, and when he rose, Inuyasha stuck out his hand to shake with the Healer.

"Please, just call me Inuyasha." He insisted.  "Thank you for keeping us safe.  I was glad to meet you as well."

"We will be seeing each other soon, I believe." The Healer smiled warmly at the prince.  "I look forward to it."

"As do I."  Inuyasha turned to leave, hooking his arm through both bundles despite Kikyo's protestations, and they were off with another flourish of Shippo's cape.

"And so." Miroku sighed, looking down at the woman on his floor.  "It is just the two of us, then."

The End (Of Part 21, That Is)


	23. Spinning

Sorry about the repeated delay in updates.  I was in a car crash, so things have been…different.

Gossamer Dreams

Part 22

"The Taijiya want us to expect delays in the completion of their task."  Naraku stroked the head in his lap while frowning irritably.  "I received notice only hours ago that the party sent must have been apprehended, as they have not checked in for far longer than normal.  Either they are captured by their targets, or they are somewhere far from this city, unable to send messages back easily."

"It could be expected, brother mine." Kijo purred as she sat up, kissing the corner of his mouth warmly.  "The Taijiya family is certainly renowned for their abilities, but they are not infallible.  In addition, I believe that two children were sent, an utter insult to our status, and to the importance of our task."

"Sango Taijiya's skills outstrip her father's, and she is not very much of a child these days." The lilt in his voice caused Kijo to giggle horribly.  "Her brother is young, but he is easily one of the best assassins the family has to offer.  I would have preferred if Sango would have gone on her own, or if her father had accompanied her, but how could I refuse the boy when he looked so adorably determined?  You know how the thought of the young staining their hands excites me."

"Brother, you are so very evil sometimes, I wonder if I can place my trust in you." She teased him, kissing the edge of his ear slowly.  "Let us not argue about the skills of the Taijiya, let me simply set your mind at ease by doing as I would have done from the beginning had you left the decision to me.  Let us send the Shichinintai.  You know how high their skill level is, and they are very thorough.  No one survives an encounter, and so my personal assassins have escaped all notice so far.  They are restless, and itching to be trusted once more with a task.  It's been months since I last let them out of their cages."

"I do not know about that group."  Naraku busied himself with a long lock of Kijo's hair.  "The Taijiya are easy to manipulate, and honest enough that I never fear them.  They are strong, but not truly a threat to my own livelihood.  However, the Shichinintai are not loyal to any love but their own love of destruction.  They would just as soon kill us as they would kill any target.  They may one day grow so restless that when you move to pat them, they rip your hand off so that they might escape and make a name for themselves."

"They would have no idea how to support themselves in the world without me." Kijo waved a dismissive hand.  "I raised them each from infancy, and I trust their loyalty completely.  I give them the blood they have been taught to crave, and they give me unwavering obedience.  It is a simple enough exchange."

"Perhaps one day they will crave something more." Naraku told her.  "That is all that I worry about, sister.  But if you insist upon it, we may send them out.  Let us wait a few days, though, so that we might be certain of the Taijiya's failure in this mission.  If they cannot do this on their own, I will not doubt the need to free your hounds."

"You are supposedly so hard, so cold." Kijo whispered in his ear, a grin teasing at her full lips.  "But I know your weaknesses.  I know the way to your soft underbelly.  You can never resist me, can you?"

Naraku did not answer.  He only turned to his sister and swallowed her breath.  He felt that was answer enough.

----------

There are many secrets forgotten in the depths of any palace, and the Palace of Fukumaden's royalty was no exception to this rule.  It housed endless chambers, corridors, dungeons, secret passages, and hidden rooms.  When they had taken over the palace after their coup of the country's power, the Youkai, even while still aided by the Gifted, had no hope of immediately discovering all of the concealed bits and pieces of the castle.  For all they knew, a distant cousin of the former Emperor had secreted themselves so effectively within the walls of the Palace that they were trapped and rotting right beneath the noses of their captors.  Perhaps such incidents occurred, and perhaps the thought is mere fancy.  However, over time, Youkai and Palace grew to know each other better, and some secrets were revealed.  The Chambers were one of the oldest of these, and perhaps it was because the apartment hidden behind the tapestry was so very large, it could not evade notice for long.  Whatever the reason, this was not the only secret that the Palace eventually revealed to its captors, but some secrets were known to so very few Youkai that when those that had made such discoveries died, the secret was once more known to no living soul.

There was one small wing of the Palace, the existence of which was limited to a very few number of people outside of its inhabitants, who were virtual prisoners within their highly decorated, pristine walls.  In fact, other than the young men living in the Barracks, as they had come to call it, the number of people who knew of its location and of the very fact that it existed numbered so few that they could be counted on one hand.  The men there rarely saw the light of day except through their barred windows, and the little they knew of the outside world was gleaned from their limited excursions, which were anything but typical, as well as anything that could be gathered from the small library they had collected over the years from their master, the woman they all called the Mother.  They knew that she was not _their_ mother, as she had been clear on that.  However, she was all they knew, and so she was the Mother.

There were two servants, highly trusted Youkai under the service of the Mother, who knew of the Barracks.  They brought food and drink, they cleaned and did what they could to keep their secret charges happy.  They did not trust each other, and each watched for the other to slip and to let someone know of their duty, so that they might rise above their doomed colleague.  This was why the secret was so completely safe.  They did not dare to tell anyone, and were not tempted.  No one could pay better than their mistress, and who would care?  Best to just go on as they did, doing exactly as they were told without question.

The Mother had a brother who also knew, and had actually visited the Barracks on a few occasions.  He was distant, cold, and twisted, a man they called the Uncle, simply because of his relationship to the Mother.  They did not love him, as they did not love his sister.  They loved very little.

They did love blood.

The Mother had raised them to believe that they were utterly worthless, and that the only reason for their existence was to cause destruction.  They would never be loved or recognized, for they were all of them outcasts, and the world hated them and did not want them back.  The only way to survive and to have a purpose was to kill or be killed.  That would make the Mother happy, and then they would be treated well, and so they would also be happy.  It did not take long for this positive reinforcement to work into a craving for blood.

They needed to kill.  It was the reason for living.

They were the Shichinintai.

And they only served the Mother.

"Children." She had called them children since they were squalling babes, and now that they were all of them grown, she still called them children.  Compared to her, they were younger, but since she took such careful care of herself, she did not look so very much their senior.  She took great pleasure in this fact.  "I have news." She did not need to speak loudly when she was in the corridor outside of their rooms, eight chambers she had discovered by accident only weeks before she decided exactly what she could use them for, and only months before the first baby had been acquired for this purpose.  They could hear her, as they were always listening during the day, thirsting for her summons.  Wanting to show their might, and to be able to kill once more.

"Mother." He was not the tallest, or the biggest of his brethren, but the handsome young man with the brilliantly blue eyes and the meticulously clean dark hair pulled back in a long braid was clearly the leader of the band.  He was not the oldest, he was not the smartest, he was not the fastest, or even the prettiest.  He was the best, however, and they all knew it without having to fight against each other.  They loved him for his ability to kill, and they would follow him wherever he led.  "We hear you."

"Listen well, then." She smiled at the seven young men kneeling before her, utterly subservient as far as she could see.  That was as it should be.  "You may be making a little trip very soon if you are up to it."

"Of course we will be." The leader told her, his eyes on the floor as he spoke.  "When have you need of us?"

"In two days time, I shall return to select two of you for a mission that will be very simple, yet very rewarding.  You will have a very good time, I know." She smiled as though genuinely fond of these servants before her, human though they might be.  "There may be no reason for you to go, but I have little doubt that the woman you will be replacing has failed in her objective."  At this, one of the men snorted slightly, but she did not trouble herself.  It was well known to her that the slender young man who liked women's robes best despised women and loved nothing better than cutting their throats with his special sword.  Of course, he would never hurt the Mother.  That was understood.

"We shall await your return, Mother." The leader leaned forward, kissing her hand as he had learned to from infancy.  This was all they knew, and none of them bothered to question it.

Or so it seemed to Kijo, Mother to them all.

----------

"I hope she selects me." A man who kept his head shaved smooth told his comrades as they gathered in the chamber they used as a sitting room since there was only seven of them and they had eight rooms at their disposal.  "I have been kept here too long."

"We all have.  And besides that, Ginkotsu and you were allowed out with Mukotsu only two months past." The small man who at first glance could be mistaken for a woman told the bald man while whipping out an ornamental fan and waving it airily before him.  "It should be my turn by now."

"Only two of us means that there are not many to kill." The leader spoke up, his hand on his chin in consideration.  "And it does not matter that Renkotsu was last to go out, Jakotsu.  She will send him out again if he is most suited to the mission.  He is the smartest of us all."

"Except maybe for Suikotsu." Jakotsu waved dismissively with his fan toward a corner of the room where one of their number, a tall man with short hair caught back with a band at the nape of his neck, sat reading and avoiding their company entirely.

"Yes, but _that_ Suikotsu would not kill a fly." Renkotsu reminded the feminine man pointedly.  It was known that of all the Shichinintai, only one had resisted training so strongly that it had caused their psyche actual damage.  Suikotsu was a shy, well-read young man while in the Barracks, but when he stepped out of it, he became an entirely different person who was more bloodthirsty than the rest of them.  None of them questioned the way he was.  It had always been that way, and so they understood that it always would be.  Sometimes they wondered if the Mother would tire of his resistance and have him killed, but they were unsure whether this idea excited or frightened them, as the thought of one of their number dying would certainly make the rest of them more fragile.

"True, but he is still very smart." Jakotsu asserted before pausing, waving his fan about again.  "And that is entirely beside the point.  I was trying to explain that it would only make sense for her to send me out next time.  I am practically the best killer.  I am certainly the fastest."

"That you are, but Bankotsu is the best." Renkotsu nodded deferentially to their leader.  "You should remember that before he feels the need to remind you."

"Bankotsu would not hurt me, would you, big brother?" Jakotsu smiled winningly at their leader, using a nickname he used sometimes to tease their leader about his understood position of authority.

"It would be a shame to bloody such a pretty dress." Bankotsu spoke as though seriously considering attacking the cross dresser.  "So I will simply have to wait until you've changed into something a bit more shabby, and then I will think about it once more and tell you."

"You are such a tease." Jakotsu laughed, low and throaty, and suddenly, it was very clear that he was male.  "How many targets do you think we will have?  Not very many, you said before.  Do you think there will be women?"

"You always want there to be nothing but pretty young men." Bankotsu sighed as though this was a long-standing issue between them.  "Sometimes women need to die as well, Jakotsu."

"Far too often, I am afraid." He sighed, flouncing to his feet and moving toward the door.  "I think I shall retire for now.  Until later, my brothers." He dipped a low curtsy and left in a flurry of skirts punctuated only by a loud sigh from Renkotsu.

"Is he not yet old enough to give up his game of dress-up?" the bald man asked the room, who all of them withheld comment.  After a few minutes, Bankotsu excused himself, and then no one saw the point of the gathering lasting any longer than it already had.  In no time, they were all in their own rooms.

Or at least, most of them were.

For within secrets such as these, more secrets will hide themselves, and one truth about the Shichinintai was that they were not all of them exactly as they appeared.  Only their own hearts could know how true they were, and to what causes and masters.

If only the Mother knew, she would not be quite so self-assured.

The End (Of Part 22, That Is)


	24. Flurry

And here we are again!

Gossamer Dreams

Part 23

"Mm, yes." Miroku smiled to himself, placing the spoon he had just used to taste the stew he was preparing back in its pot before turning to speak to his guest. "Dinner should be ready momentarily."

"That is wonderful." Sarcasm dripped thick from her tone as she seemed to attempt to bore holes in his head with the vicious nature of her glare.

"I am so glad you have come to visit, Sango." He told her in a polite and gracious tone, as though utterly unaware of his guest's annoyance with him. "As a Healer, I was once able to visit with you and your family quite regularly, due to the danger that was intrinsic in your work, but you have not spoken with me for some years now. I missed your change from delightful child to graceful woman entirely, but I am no less pleased to see you and know that you are still well."

"Your concern is duly appreciated, Healer." She pursed her lips tightly. "Now, would you please untie me?" she tugged at the bonds that attached her firmly to a chair, which she had almost hopped away on earlier that day, so that now Miroku had also secured said chair to the mantelpiece with a series of hooks he had hammered in place while cheerily telling her that he was sorry she was in such a hurry, but she really must stay for a while longer.

"I apologize for the inconvenience, dear Lady, but you must see my position. It took you precious little time to discover the whereabouts of your targets, and while I appreciate your unquestionable skill at the calling for which you have trained your entire life, I must protest that I would rather have this whole mess end with as few deaths and serious injuries as possible, so I must hold you here until the pair of them have well and truly disappeared from your detection." Miroku told her politely, as though he was explaining the condition of a patient to their rich family. "I will do my best to keep you comfortable while you are in my home, but if you persist on attempting to escape, you will have to remain safely tied to that chair."

"I could escape as soon as you're asleep. You might as well untie me now." She informed him, full of anger and frustration. "No matter how you try, I won't be stopped by a Healer. I am a Taijiya. I could kill you right now."

"Could you?" Miroku appeared intrigued. "Let me see, then."

"You are such a fool. If you knew the position you were in, you would not speak so lightly. One does not cage a dangerous beast, for that beast will only track them down when they inevitably escape." She threatened him, her tone struggling to stay calm.

"So you will come to see me again?" he turned again, stirring the stew once more. "That would be quite wonderful. Hopefully I will have time to prepare more adequate food next time. We shall see. Perhaps I can come to visit you instead? Or does your family still welcome my company?"

"No one blames you for what happened." She rolled her eyes, finding the idea utterly ridiculous. "You were not the one who injured her in the first place. If anyone was to blame, it was her partner."

"Sango, I find it hard to believe that _you_ deserve responsibility for the mission that killed your dear sister." Miroku set the spoon back with a loud rattle, turning upon her quite suddenly. "I assumed that your family held to the idea that I was simply not skilled enough to save her, and that was the reason I was never again summoned. Last night, your brother's reaction to my identity only verified this suspicion."

"Kohaku is young. He understands little." Sango answered with a dismissive shake of her head.

"Yet he is old enough to kill." Miroku bent to remove the kettle from the fire as it whistled its readiness, carrying the steaming vessel over to where two teacups and a pot with leaves awaited the steaming liquid. "Do you not find that odd?"

"No." she answered without a trace of doubt in her voice. "I too killed others at his age. It is the way of our family, and it is our strength to handle such a burden that grants us a position above others of our kind."

"You refer to humans." Miroku eyed her as he set the pot to steep and then returned to check the stew.

"You speak of it as though you are separate from them all." Sango noted as she eyed the tea suspiciously.

"As do you." He replied easily, turning just in time to spot her speculative gaze resting on the steaming teapot. "I will not poison you. I am the Healer, if you will recall. You are the Taijiya."

"Too true." She turned to face him fully, a measure of her anger clear in the tightness of her expression. "And yet, here you have me, captured and bound as neatly as though you were a member of the guard and I nothing more than a petty thief."

"Make no mistake, Sango, I would not call the goods that you would steal from me petty. You shall not capture the girl, nor shall you kill her. The same is true for her prince. She is important to me, and while I understand that the Taijiya set no stock in the survival of their loved ones, I will die to protect her." He assured her, and she bristled, no longer making an attempt to hide the venom in her tone.

"You know _nothing_ of my heart, nor do you come close to estimating what importance I place on the lives of my family members." She hissed at him, clearly offended at his implication. "Do you think there is a day that goes by when I do not feel regret for the lives I have taken, or the lives that have been taken from me? Every calling has its drawbacks. You feel righteous, because you go about saving lives while I take them away, but if I can believe that the jobs I complete are for a better world, or that I am effectively saving someone else's life by taking this one, I will let myself believe that. There are many that hate the name of the Taijiya, and yet I go on. Do you not see, Healer? No more than you could give up Healing, knowing that there are those relying on you, and that you would have a hard time surviving in any other way, I could not betray my family and give up the business at which my father now tells me I am best. My family relies on me to put food on their table. My clients rely on me to do what they cannot. I am sure that I have killed innocents, but I am also sure that there are those that have died under my sword that were horrid people, killers and rapists with no regard for others. Do not make me out to be one of them, for I will not have it, Healer."

"If you like." He spoke after a while, his tone soft. "You may call me Miroku."

"I wish not to address you so familiarly." She turned her nose up in disdain.

"As you wish it." He sighed deeply, and then let another brief pause travel between them before speaking again. "I am sorry to have misjudged you."

"It does not matter." She answered, but it was clear in the tone of her voice that it was of the greatest import to her that he understand this situation correctly. "It has happened before, and I am sure it will happen again."

"Next time, I will hopefully not be the one to offend you." He offered her before filling her bowl and carrying it to her side. "And now for dinner, which I can only assume will be an exercise in patience for both of us. Shall I feed you?"

"I can feed myself." She told him assuredly, and he raised both eyebrows incredulously.

"I doubt that, unless you are hiding a third arm somewhere I cannot see." He spoke without any challenge in his tone. He was simply being honest with her. "Just suffer me for this meal, and perhaps in the morning, we will think of a more suitable arrangement." He assured her as he blew on a spoonful of food and then offered it to her with a hopeful look in his grey eyes.

"In the morning? You will make me sleep like this?" Sango affected a pout that Miroku immediately decided she must use on her father and mother when she wanted things her way. "Have you no sense of chivalry? Of propriety? Of hospitality?"

"The rules of how a guest is treated in my house are slightly different when that guest appears peacefully as opposed to when the guest attempts to kill someone precious to me in their time here. I am sure you understand."

"You know…perhaps we could make an agreement." She sighed after a while. "If you let me go, I will not chase after the targets."

"Would you swear, also, not to send anyone else after said targets?" he raised his brows nearly to his hairline, and she frowned at being caught out so easily.

"How did you know I would do that?" She wanted to know, and he smiled as he fed her another mouthful of stew.

"The same way I knew you would not lie." He winked at her and would not speak further on it. "Now, eat your supper like a good Taijiya so that you might grow up to be even more beautiful than you have already become." She choked on her stew, but did not offer complaint for the rest of the evening.

----------

"My children, I have news." Kijo spoke as she stood in the corridor of the Shichinintai Chambers, her voice drawing them all like flies to raw meat. "Two of you will be sent on a mission. The prince Inuyasha has turned traitor to the crown, and has left the Palace in order to rally support against his brother, the Emperor. He has taken a Gifted witch to aid him, and I will have you kill them both."

"Mother, which of us shall go?" Renkotsu spoke up, his bald head lowered in deference to her judgment.

"I have thought on that topic at length, and while you would each be capable of this mission, I am sure, the two that I feel are most suited for this assignment will be Jakotsu and Bankotsu. You may have to travel, and you will certainly have to do some searching. I need you to seem innocent. Jakotsu, as that sort of thing suits you, the female costume you wear will mark you as a new bride, and Bankotsu will, of course, pose as your husband. Play the part, as I know you have the ability to act rather convincingly when it is required of you. I have a sketch of your targets, as usual, and you will search for them under the pretense that they are cousins you have come to visit now that your honeymoon has ended. Jakotsu, please do not overact. You are feminine enough without needing to push it over the top."

"Thank you, Mother." Jakotsu was nearly bouncing on his heels. "I will be ready to leave in no time, I assure you."

"We appreciate your confidence in us." Bankotsu bowed to her solemnly. "We will not disappoint you."

"I know, my children." She smiled wickedly before handing him the sketch. "Have fun."

"We shall."

The End (Of Part 23, That Is)


	25. Thoughts

And here we go again!

Gossamer Dreams

Part 24

The Palace was in a flurry of gossip, servants being sent back and forth amongst all the courtiers trying to gain some bit of intelligence. The women speculated that they could tell precisely when it would happen, to the minute. The men spoke of who would be formerly invited once all was said and done, and who could possibly already be attending the most important event that had happened within the stone walls in a number of years.

The Empress Kagura was in travail. That much was certain. The news had leaked some time in the wee hours of the morning, just as breakfasts were being served and casually primped nobles were helping themselves to the morning's news as well as a nice bowl of fruit. Then, around lunch time, a few of the Empress' Maidens had scattered through the Palace, carrying elite summons to the highly privileged individuals not already in attendance that would be amongst the first few to view the newborn, and to know whether this was the day that a new Heir could be named. Now that the Prince Inuyasha was gone, of course the baby would be able to skip right past its unpopular uncle in the short path to the throne of Fukumaden. Speculation, as well as spirits, ran high. If the child was a girl, then it would be a very privileged Princess, but what all around hoped for was a boy. An heir who could continue this line for them. Although it was whispered by a very nervous few that perhaps…if there was no male heir, a daughter would be able to cast her inheritance in with a husband that could be chosen from any of their great families. And whose son might be chosen?

But it was far too early to count one's tidings in their entirety. The child could just as easily be a boy as it could be a girl. No point in planning for the impossible. Or was there? With no news beyond the fact that Kagura was still, in fact, in her travail, for hours on end, every end of the situation had been dissected and supposed and thought of and planned for.

Of course, no one planned for the intent of two of the privileged handful seated in the Imperial sitting room, waiting for news of the child, which would reach their ears before any others. Kijo, Empress Mother of Fukumaden, and her brother, the great Lord Naraku, were so pleased that their day had finally come that they could hardly contain their glee. Twin smiles lifted their normally wicked lips, and their happiness did not go as unnoticed as they might have thought it could have in this entirely celebratory situation. The Emperor of Fukumaden was nervous as to the outcome of the day, as well as the health and strength of his wife and that of her child. He felt horrid that the true father had no way of being with them in the sitting room without rousing suspicion, and so he had to satisfy himself with the knowledge that his markedly clever concubine had opened a servile line of communication with him as soon as she had cried out in the cold, dark hours of the early morning. But all of this emotion did not keep him from noting that the two people he least trusted seemed most pleased with this truly happiest of days. Why were they so happy?

The answer, he was sure, would make him a very unhappy Emperor, which was all the more reason to divine what it might be. What possible advantage did the birth of an heir serve them? For surely, they would not be so utterly smug if something were not occurring to better their lot in the world. Very little could better their lot, save for Kagura and him to take a sudden plunge from the tallest tower.

And suddenly, Sesshoumaru thought that idea did not seem so very funny.

-

"There is still no news, my Lord." Jaken bowed low, annoyed that he was being ordered about by the Emperor's concubine, but only because he was just as anxious for news as anyone else in the Palace. Usually, he was almost fond of the girl who had captured his Lord's heart so completely. Now that she was also pregnant, Jaken tended to be gentler with her than he had been before, when he had wrongly assumed that she was a fleeting interest of Sesshoumaru's. He should have known that a man so noble would carry his high ideals into all realms of his life. "Though the Empress has been abed for nearly twenty hours, the midwife's assistant assures us that all is going as normally as one could hope, and that she is doing splendidly."

"Does she cry out? Can you hear nothing of what goes on beyond her doors?" he pleaded, and Jaken pursed his thin lips, wondering yet again what the connection was between the young Lord ka'Ookami and the Emperor and Empress. Perhaps they had been childhood friends? He knew that the young man had visited more often than many nobles of his standing could expect, but more than that he was not sure he _wanted_ to know. He was simply doing as his mistress had bid him.

"I hear her cries, yes." He confirmed, and the look of tragic pain on the young noble's face was almost as though he imagined himself in the midst of Kagura's trial. "But then again, I have been in the vicinity of many births, and this seems no worse than the rest. I am sure she is faring as well as the young woman keeps assuring us."

"Are you positive? Perhaps she shows the truth in a more favorable light to avoid the wrath of the Emperor, who is surely most concerned for the welfare of both the child and mother." Lord ka'Ookami was sitting at a table that was full of breakfast items, as he had been since an hour after Jaken had been sent to alert him of the beginning of labor, and yet he doubted that he had eaten more than a mouthful of anything set before him. However, he had been consuming mulled wine in quantities that Jaken frankly felt were going to lead to some trouble for the young noble. He still seemed rather sober, but it did not appear that the wine had calmed him down one whit.

"I am sure she is more fearful of facing the wrath of an Emperor she has been lying to than one that is merely upset with the truth of her message." Jaken gave a deep bow to take the challenge out of his statement. "With all due respect, Lord ka'Ookami, I shall return to my post. I will come back as soon as there is news, or failing that, in half an hour's time."

"Yes, very well, thank you again, Jaken. I appreciate your attention on this day." Kouga waved him off, his words sounding like more of an embedded bit of training than a sincere show of gratitude. Of course, the young lord was rather anxious. Perhaps he had some special stock in today's happenings? Maybe the Emperor and him had privately agreed to wed the child to a member of his family. That would explain his anxiety. Kouga ka'Ookami had risen in the ranks of nobility quite a bit in the past year or so, but he was still below many others. To make the leap into the royal bloodlines would be rather life changing for him. Suddenly, he would be above all others, save the actual Emperor and Empress as well as their immediate relations. Still, being so high up in the scheme of everything would be an amazing feat for a lord so young. Yes, that would surely explain everything.

Kouga sighed deeply and shook the empty jug of mulled wine. How was it that he had finished the entire thing off already? Of course, he had been up for nearly twenty hours now, waiting with decreasing patience and increasing worry. Realizing that Kagura would probably not appreciate him drinking himself stupid, he shoved the jug to one side and picked up the cold teakettle. Sighing, he clapped imperiously, drawing a young boy into the room with his summons. "Could you heat this? I have the sudden urge for tea." He handed the boy the kettle, trying to remember his name, but finally giving up and returning his thoughts to Kagura.

Should it really take all of a day for one child to make its way into the world? It seemed like a great torture to all those concerned and involved. He suddenly wished his mother were still alive to tell him that all was well. It was a childish wish, to be sure, but as the woman had mothered no less than eight children, she had to know for sure whether such a lengthy birth was normal. Perhaps his father, who had attended each birth, would know the answer, but the man was removed to his country estate for the winter, which was rather cruel to his aging bones. The draftiness of a castle did not help him in this respect at all, and as Kouga had already surpassed his rank, the older noble had felt that leaving the family's lot in his hands was rather wise for the time being. Of course, with Kagura to keep him busy, Kouga was far from lonely. He also had his two closest supporters, cousins within the extensive ka'Ookami family whom he had selected to accompany him to the Palace when he first was installed there what seemed countless years ago. His cousin Ayame was one of the Empress' Maidens as well, and so he still had family around him most of the time.

Then it struck him. Did the Empress' Maidens not have the unique privilege of standing in the very chambers in which birthing would take place? He was not positive about this, but he was certain that the Maidens must have some further information to share besides Jaken's repeated assurances that all would end well. Of course, Ayame was not the most _observant_ of young ladies, but she certainly seemed to go to any lengths to please Kouga, as he could note in past exchanges with her. Certainly she would not begrudge her dear cousin whatever details she might have gleaned over the long hours of this most fateful day? And no one could question his right to summon his own _cousin_ to speak with him. After all, every noble in the Palace was aching for news of the new child, and he was sure that anyone else would take advantage of this opportunity had it occurred to them to do so.

"Yes, thank you." Kouga accepted the newly heated teapot quite eagerly now that he had a new plan of attack. "Now then, could you do me the favor of summoning young Ginta and Hakkaku to my chambers? I wish to speak with them." This was only slightly true. There was no sort of propriety in sending such a young and common servant into the Imperial Chambers, especially not today. However, sending his cousins, who were ranked rather high due to his own rise through nobility, would be a compliment to the importance of the errand, as well as making it all seem rather unsuspicious. Also, he was positive that if any complaint were raised, Sesshoumaru or Rin would certainly agree to release the girl for a short time, as she was not so indispensable that she would need to stand at the Empress' side for every moment of the birth.

It was a very short time before Ginta and Hakkaku returned, nearly trembling with excitement. Whether this was from being summoned by their liege, or simply the anticipation of the heir's birth that permeated the hearts of every noble in the Palace, Kouga did not know. He smiled at them in what he hoped was a very friendly manner. "It is good to see both of you on such a fortuitous day as this." He began. "I summoned you here so that you would be able to help us find out a bit more about what is happening in the Imperial Chambers today. Are you both up to the task?"

"Yes, of course!" Hakkaku was so excited at the prospect of finding something out that he suddenly hopped as he cried out his willingness to help. Ginta nodded vehemently and gave a jerky bow.

"We are sworn to serve you in all things, Lord Kouga." They were quite within their rights, referring to his first name instead of his surname as a servant would do, though Kouga knew of some nobles who would insist that even their lesser family members refer to them much more formally. However, Kouga had grown up with these two at his side, and he would feel rather odd insisting on any sort of formality as great as all that. He might be the current leader of the family, now that his father had stepped down, but he was no tyrant.

"That is very good for all of us." He smiled again. "I am sure you two are just as curious as I to know how close the child is, among other things. And thus I have concocted a plan, as is my responsibility as your family head."

"I told you he would think of something, Ginta!" Hakkaku piped up triumphantly before turning back to Kouga. "You see, we thought to summon our cousin from within the inner chambers a few hours ago, as you might recall that Ayame is a Maiden. However, when we went, we were turned away and could not so much as leave a message for her to meet us. It was rather disappointing, but I told Ginta that you were sure to come up with a plan twice as clever if the baby was not born soon enough."

"Aha…yes, well." Kouga tried to hide his shock at learning that his scheme had already been tried out and had failed disastrously. "My plan is something like that, but with more detailed planning so that it might succeed."

"Intriguing, cousin. Do go on." Ginta leaned forward, his brow furrowed in concentration as he set his full attention on Kouga's words.

"Well, as you know by now, the failing of your scheme was that you could not possibly reach Ayame to summon her in the first place." Kouga wracked his brain for some way past this obstacle, some admittance into the Imperial Chambers. How would he get past the unmoving guard to speak with Ayame? "The rest of it is much like a rather unsophisticated version of my own scheme, and for that I must applaud you two for thinking of such a clever answer without my aid. However, what we need is access to the Imperial Chambers."

"How do you hope to gain such access?" Hakkaku wanted to know. "Even the servant's traffic to and from the Chambers today has been rather restricted. If only we had personal contact with one of the personal Imperial servants, we might have a chance."

"That is it exactly!" Kouga had to restrain the sudden excitement he felt at seeing a new solution present itself. "You see, I happen to know the Empress rather well for a man of my rank, and so I am familiar with one of her servants, a man by the name of Jaken. He should be able to get any message to Ayame and retrieve her for us so that we might learn what secrets she has to divulge. Your job shall be to request that Jaken report to me with her in attendance. Though your rank will not gain you admittance to the Imperial Chambers on this most private occasion, you should be able to reach a lowly servant and exchange a few words with him. If you tell him Lord Kouga ka'Ookami sent you, he will surely do whatever you say, as he would hate to displease his Mistress."

"I am not sure it is so different from our own—" Ginta was cut off in the midst of his mumbling protest by the hand Hakkaku clapped firmly over his mouth.

"It is an excellent plan, Lord Kouga." Hakkaku managed to bow awkwardly before nearly dragging a bulge-eyed Ginta from the room. Kouga froze, snorting slightly at their antics. No matter the gravity of the situation, those two could still make him forget his troubles for a precious moment or two. That was the chief reason he kept them so near to him. Sighing deeply he turned to the cup of tea he had poured just before their arrival. It should be cool enough to drink by now, he decided, and lifted it to his lips.

"Lord Kouga!" he nearly spilled the tea down his front at the shock of his chamber door slamming open and admitting three rather excited looking men into his presence. Ginta and Hakkaku looked even more jumpy than before, and Jaken, who stood between them, hardly managed to carry himself with a tenth of the dignity and gravity he usually aimed for.

"That was fast." He recovered himself, trying his best to set an example of behavior for the three lower-ranking men to follow. "Where is Ayame?"

"No idea, Lord." Ginta burst out, unable to contain his news a moment longer. "We crashed into Jaken in the hall."

"Crashed is an understatement." Hakkaku laughed nervously. "We were not paying attention, and he came flying toward us as though borne on wings to reach you…"

"The point of all this, if it pleases you." Kouga set his cup down and winced at the hot liquid sloshing over his fingers.

"The point, my Lord, is that there is no longer any reason to summon this cousin of yours." Jaken seemed dangerously close to actually smiling, a sight that Kouga was having a hard time imagining without it being immediately followed by the weathered, solid face cracking to bits and crumpling to the floor. "The Empress has delivered a healthy child only moments ago."

"She…she has?" Kouga almost lost his balance and ended up knocking the teacup over completely this time, spilling the dark liquid all over his breakfast. Not that he noticed any of this, of course. "How is she? How is the child? Is it a boy? A girl? What color are the eyes? How does it look? How does Kagura look?"

"Lord…" Ginta was apparently so shocked at Kouga's improper address of the Empress that he could find no words, and this time he clapped his own hand to his mouth. Jaken, however, let it go past him, but filed it away carefully with all his other observations of the mysterious young Lord and his dealings with Jaken's Master and Mistress.

"She is tired, the child is crying loudly, though the midwife assures us that this is quite normal. It is a boy, and no one could say what color the eyes are, as they are still closed. It looked rather angry and red, but otherwise quite perfect, with all of its tiny bits attached in the right spots, and once it was given to its mother, they both looked rather pleased with themselves, I must say." Jaken answered each question in a slow, deliberate tone, as though reporting the state of larders or the chill in the air. "The midwife was shocked speechless when she attempted to hand the child off to a wet nurse to be fed, and the Empress refused, bellowing out orders even in her weakened state. A true Empress, is our Lady Kagura."

"What did she say?" Kouga asked, imagining the look of indignance on his lover's face when she demanded a breach of custom to suit her own fancy.

"She said, 'I care not for the foolish ways of old. I have two breasts, and they are full to bursting with milk for my child. Who better to give him sustenance than I, who brought him into this world! I will feed him, and none of your superstitions will stop me.' Of course, after that, the midwife handed him over without further protest, and no one dared to say a word of how irregular it was for a noble woman, an Empress no less, to feed her child from her own body." Jaken told him, the barest hint of satisfaction in his tone. "The Emperor had the doors shut then, to afford the pair of them a bit of privacy. I daresay the nobles feel put out by it all, but the Emperor's Lady Rin swept me off to tell you the news before I could see anything more."

"A new heir, Lord Kouga. It is exciting, is it not?" Hakkaku burst out in another fit of nervous laughter, and this seemed to cause Ginta to forget his shock. His hand dropped, and his expression eased slightly. "The Emperor has announced that his name shall be Jinkoumaru. It is a great name, a strong name, and surely he will grow into a strong Emperor!"

"Of that, I am sure." Kouga sat down into the chair behind him without checking to see that it was still there. "Jinkoumaru…a great name."

"Divine steel." Jaken elaborated, as he had seen the characters used to form the child's name. "An interesting choice, is it not? As though the Emperor is foretelling a great battle for us all."

"Perhaps he is." Ginta seemed to be puzzling over something, and the look on his face was twisted in concentration, as though he were visualizing a puzzle in his mind. "Or perhaps there is more to it than that."

"Whatever the reason, this is a time to celebrate!" Hakkaku's excitement could not be quelled. "Call for wine, and we shall all of us drink toasts to our new Prince!"

The End (Of Part 24, That Is)


	26. Divergence

Here we go!

Gossamer Dreams

Part 25

"I spoke with Shippo today." Inuyasha blurted the words out after sitting silently with Kikyo for barely a moment. She had been brewing tea when he found her in the room she had settled into on his brother's eastern country estate. They had been living there for a week now, and while Inuyasha, for propriety's sake, slept in a room down the hall, he spent most of his time in Kikyo's company.

"He has returned?" she asked the question in an absent tone as she poured herself a cup of tea and did not bother with offering any to her companion. It was odd, as she almost always offered, and it occurred to him that something might be troubling her besides the obvious situation at hand. "I have been reading all day…I must have missed it."

"Kohaku has been delivered to his own private estate, and is under heavy guard." Inuyasha went on, working out the proper words even as he spoke. "He says that he is more worried for our safety than forthe boy'sescape, and so he has returned to keep us under his watch."

"Interesting," she did not seem to be the least bit interested in what he had to say. She had drained half of her tea and was staring at the cup as though willing it to break in two or some such thing.

"Is something the matter, Kikyo?" he asked, unable to ignore her odd behavior anymore. She turned to him, and he thought she looked a bit odd. Something about her eyes was altogether wrong.

"What color are my eyes, Inuyasha?" she asked him, as though this were a vastly important question.

"Of course they are purple, you are a Gifted, Kikyo…" he drifted off, as his gaze rested on the object in question and he realized what it was that had bothered him about her appearance. "Grey? Since when are your eyes _grey_?" For they had suddenly, inexplicably, changed to a slate shade that in no way resembled their natural hue.

"It is a trick." She smiled at him then, and though the color of her eyes was still a bit odd, he offered her an answering grin. "I never learned it fully when I was a child, but I knew that Miroku must have taught Rin, so I made her explain it to me in detail. I use my spirit energy and this infusion to shift the color to something less…noticeably illegal."

"Is _that_ how your brother has lived all these years in the capital?" Inuyasha sounded as though she had just solved a great puzzle for him, and his smile widened slightly. "That is indeed a clever trick. How does it taste, by the way?" he indicated the half-full teacup.

"Like rotten sawdust, to be honest." She pulled a face at the steaming liquid. "But with sugar…it is not so bad. Now then, you were telling me something about Shippo?"

"Oh…yes." He cleared his throat and looked away. Her grey gaze was somehow foreign, and it bothered him that she was not quite recognizable as herself. If her eyes had been blue…he would have sworn she had become Kagome. It was disturbing to think that she could shift her appearance like that. "I asked him to help me find my power…if I have any, that is. No one is sure how a Youkai Gifted child inherits powers and such, or if they are truly neutral. He believes, since I have fangs and claws, I should have some sort of Youkai ability, but he says they can be elusive in individuals if one does not know what to look for."

"Certainly if I can exercise Gifted abilities, your Youkai strength should be unhindered by your mother's blood." Kikyo was pouring the contents of her pot into a large canteen, and she carefully twisted the cap in place while Inuyasha stared at her as if she had grown a second head.

"But I am only half." He spoke very slowly, as though she might have misheard him before.

"As am I." She placed the canteen carefully to one side and set about clearing the rest of her tea preparations. "We are of the same sort, you and I. I suppose I forgot to mention, with the confusion of the Taijiya, and all of that. Miroku told me only after we came to his house. My father was a Youkai, and I actually have a twin sister who shows no signs of her Gifted heritage, and instead passes as a Youkai noblewoman."

"Kagome!" he yelped the name, and she frowned at him slightly.

"Yes, exactly so." She nodded, putting away the last bag of herbs before moving to sit next to him once more. "That is why we are so similar in appearance. We are sisters, but of course, she has no idea of any of this."

"This story…it seems so fantastical…" he was clearly struggling with this new information.

"So does your own story, does it not, my love?" she raised a pale hand to his cheek and sent him a reassuring smile. "I believe Miroku would never lie to me, especially not about this. True, he did not tell me all of the truth before, but think of how hard it would have been for me to accept or understand all of what that meant when I was young. I was a foolish child. No doubt I would have run away, intent on meeting my sister and learning all about her. I would never have made it past her front gates, though. How was he to know that no matter whether or not he told me the truth, I would end up in the Chambers before I even became a woman? It is a cruel thing, fate. It draws us together, and at the same time, keeps us apart."

"We are together now, Kikyo." Inuyasha clasped her hands in his. "I will not let go of you. I will grow strong and protect you, and we shall be married."

"Who will marry us, Inuyasha?" she laughed humorlessly. "You and I are fugitives, both of us half-breeds…admit it, our love is hopeless."

"It is not hopeless!" he was shaking with the violence of his belief. "Look how far we have come, you and I! Think of how we met in the first place. Truly, our meeting must have been arranged by the fates so that we would be happy in love after suffering so much in the rest of our lives."

"Inuyasha, I love you," she leaned against him then so that he would not see the flush in her cheeks. "You love me as well, and is that not what a true marriage is made of? Your brother married without a choice in the matter, and that is not love that he shares with Kagura. Cruel that they should be expected and encouraged to do the thing we are forbidden from."

"You mean…" Inuyasha was blushing now, as well.

"If we cannot be married by law, I do not care for such a thing. Let us marry our hearts, as they are truly united in these feelings that we share." She looked up then, and with a boldness that left them both breathless, pressed her lips briefly to Inuyasha's gaping mouth.

"You want us to…" he was still incapable of communicating properly, but it was clear that they understood each other without words.

"My mother died giving me life." She said, shifting the topic suddenly, her tone not changing at all. "It makes me wonder if my body can support a life of its own, or if birth would kill me as well." She kissed him again, moving so that her mouth brushed his as she whispered to him. "If I have only one chance at it, I want my child to be yours."

Inuyasha had no idea what he was supposed to say, but she did not seem in the mood for words in any case.

ooooo

"What are you _doing_?" were the first words out of the attractive young man's mouth after flinging open the door to the room he had acquired that evening at the small inn that was tucked neatly into the seedy back alleys of Yuurei where the pair had spent most of their day of freedom making not-so-casual inquiries as to the possible location of a young couple and anyone that might have asked after them before. Jakotsu had soon enough complained that his slippered feet were killing him, and Bankotsu, posing as the doting new husband, had been obliged to find his "bride" a place to rest while he continued with the questionings. He thought that he had a few leads, but at the moment, all the young man wanted was to climb into bed, and when he entered their room to find Jakotsu arranging flowers in a vase on the end table, he was understandably surprised. It seemed so…normal, like something a woman of this outside world would do. Not something that Jakotsu would take the time for.

"Are they not beautiful?" he turned a wide smile to his partner. "I asked a boy to go fetch me some fresh flowers, and I think he did a rather good job."

"You like flowers?" Bankotsu sat on the edge of the bed and began loosening the ties on his clothing, watching Jakotsu continue to fuss over the colorful flora. "I did not know that."

"Boys." Jakotsu rolled his hazel eyes and turned to face Bankotsu, apparently satisfied with the arrangement. "Why would I not like them? They are one of the few things that look beautiful even years after they have died. Imagine if humans could maintain that beauty, soaked in blood, trapped forever in that moment when life fled them so unexpectedly that they lost all control and let the fullness of their character shine forth, bringing out their greatest possible potential, and frozen in time, like a flower. Perfect."

"Flowers can become quite ugly if you do not preserve them properly." Bankotsu argued, not saying anything to stop Jakotsu from assisting him in the removal of his clothes, one article at a time. "Perhaps the next boy you kill, you should hang him upside down so that he can dry out. That way, he too can maintain his elusive moment of ultimate beauty."

"That sounds interesting." Jakotsu stopped helping his partner undress and instead they began unfastening his own feminine attire. "Do you volunteer to let me perfect that technique on you?"

"I think you are confusing the living and the dead again, Jakotsu." He chuckled darkly as he worked at the back of Jakotsu's dress, and the smaller man calmly let him go about the process without assistance. Bankotsu had plenty of experience undressing him, as it was.

"Are you jealous, Bankotsu?" he whirled around as soon as felt the sudden loosening of silk that told him the back was completely unfastened, and he shrugged out of his outer layer easily. "I have told you, I only like to look at them. They smell rather too horribly for anything beyond that, I assure you."

"At least if I find a corpse in your bed, you save me the trouble of killing him." Bankotsu tugged lightly at the under garments that Jakotsu was taking his time with. "Always the thoughtful one, Jakotsu. You want everyone to think you are so vicious, yet look at you now. Naked, just finished arranging flowers for us both, your only impure thoughts reserved for those who are beyond their realm of ability to make me need to worry about you running off with them."

"One day, I will run away." Jakotsu assured him, kicking the last of his clothes aside with his soft silk slippers. "I will leave behind Mother and all of the brothers, and I will be whatever I want and do whatever I like."

"Will you be alone?" Bankotsu asked him. "With only your pretty pressed flowers to keep you company?"

"I will be with you, of course." Jakotsu slumped forward, wrapping his arms around the taller man, who embraced him in return. "And we will both of us go to a place where we can escape all of this, and the only thing I'll think to kill will be pretty flowers."

"That will satisfy you?" Bankotsu's mouth was inches from the other young man's, and his breath was catching slightly at the familiar ecstasy of skin on skin.

"You are more than enough for that task." Jakotsu assured him, sighing deeply as the pin was pulled from his hair, letting the waves fall around his shoulders like dark silk. "Do I satisfy _you_?"

"Knowing you are happy…that is enough to satisfy me." Bankotsu pressed his lips to Jakotsu's for a brief, teasing moment. "Being with you like this is so far beyond that, I could not begin to explain it."

"Then stop explaining and start being," Jakotsu kissed his way along Bankotsu's jawline to his ear, "with me."

Night fell without either of them taking notice.

ooooo

The End (Of Part 25, That Is)


End file.
